Russia has declared a federal state of emergency in response to an ongoing oil spill in the Kerch Strait, Russian Emergency Situations Minister Aleksandr Kurenkov announced on Dec. 26. The crisis began when two Russian oil tankers,

Crimean activists warn that the situation on the occupied peninsula could be even worse than on the Russian side of the Black Sea coast. According to one of them, the consequences of the oil spill on the Crimean beaches are more dangerous than in the Russian city of Anapa.

At least one person has died after two Russian oil tankers took heavy storm damage in the Kerch Strait, spilling oil and sparking an emergency rescue operation, Russian officials told state news outlets.