Third tanker in trouble as oil washes up on Russia's Black Sea coast

MOSCOW (Reuters) -Spilled oil has washed up along "tens of kilometres" of the Russian Black Sea coast after two tankers were badly damaged in a storm at the weekend, a regional official said on Tuesday, and state media said a third vessel was now in trouble. TASS news agency said the third ship, also a tanker, had issued a distress signal off the port of Kavkaz, but its hull was still intact, there was no oil spillage and the crew was safe. The ships, both more than 50 years old, were carrying some 9,200 metric tons (62,000 barrels) of oil products in total, TASS reported, raising fears it could become one of the largest environmental disasters to hit the region in years.