The head of the crisis and disaster management desk and Prime Ministry Undersecretary Hüseyin Amcaoğlu on Wednesday said that there was a chance the massive oil slick in the Eastern Mediterranean could drift back towards Cyprus after an expected shift in wind direction in the coming days.

Speaking to BRT, Amcaoğlu said that it was important to remain vigilant and to continue taking precautionary measures due to the change expected in meteorological conditions on the weekend.

He added that there were currently no signs of pollution along the shoreline.

“The danger is still there as winds are expected to shift, blowing in a southerly and westerly direction. Winds will be northerly and easterly on Friday and Saturday so there is still the possibility of the slick changing direction back towards the island. Hopefully the wind direction will change again on Saturday which will be to our advantage,” Amcaoğlu said.

“Experts are telling us that the oil has started to change consistency become thicker and sinking to the sea bottom. It’s unlikely that any remnants will reach our coastline but the environmental impact on marine life will be immense,” he added.

Amcaoğlu told the TAK news agency on Thursday that a 3km long barrier was ready to be installed if the need emerged.

“We do not see the need to set up a barrier out at sea at the moment. We are keeping them close to the shore,” he said.

Amcaoğlu said that two vessels were collecting the oil on the sea surface 18 miles out at sea.

“We are waiting for two more ships to arrive from Turkey tomorrow,” he added.