16 Oct 2003

French Polynesia smell not linked to oil spill

5:14 pm on 16 October 2003

The French high commission in French Polynesia has issued a statement to assure the public that a petrol smell in Papeete is not caused by an oil spill.

It says the smell comes from the offloading of a tanker, the Bro Caroline, describing it as unpleasant but not harmful.

They say the weather conditions have been such that the gases from the vessel drifted towards residential areas of Taaone.