Sunken ship's oil reaches some Ibiza beaches

MADRID, July 12 (Reuters) Fuel oil leaking from a sunken merchant ship reached the coast of the Spanish resort island of Ibiza today, forcing authorities to close several beaches to tourists, island officials said.

About 150 tonnes of fuel oil are leaking from the ''Don Pedro'', which sank yesterday near the Mediterranean island.

Local television showed small patches of oil on the island's southernmost beaches, and police turned away tourists from the well-known Talamanca beach.

''A large part of the fuel has evaporated, and another part has got to the sand and is being cleaned up,'' Ibiza's Mayoress Lourdes Acosta told reporters.

Only about 500 yards of the island's 11 miles of sandy beach beachfront has been affected, government officials said.

Reuters AM VV2152