VANDALS were today being blamed for causing a potential environmental disaster in the River Calder.

Speedy action by workmen and environment agency officers at Seaways Services Ltd, Simonstone, prevented thousands of gallons of water contaminated with oil from entering the river.

Proprietor Thomas Cotterill said someone had opened the valve on a tank containing about 5,000 gallons of oily water.

The incident is the latest in a series of attacks on the distribution depot in Blackburn Road. Vehicles have been broken into or stolen and windows smashed with airgun pellets.

Mr Cotterill said there had been an accidental spillage of heat transfer oil, but staff had cleaned it up and confined it to the site. "Unfortunately, it appears that someone then opened the valve on the tank storing water which had been used to clear the oil," he said.

"Luckily, only a very small amount of oil and dirty water entered the river but it could have been much worse.

"It is thanks to the speedy action of the Environment Agency and my workers that things were not far worse."

Officers placed a boom across the river and used suction machinery to clear the oil.

An Environment Agency spokesman said: "We are still trying to assess how much oil entered the river but we are quite confident that there will be no long term damage to the environment.

"Some samples have been taken to determine if there has been any damage at all."

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.