“We received a call from a concerned citizen that an oil pipeline was spurting liquid. A hole had been dug to access the pipe and this caused the leak, Most of the spilt fuel is petrol, but when we got there it was leaking diesel”, the police said.
Pollution protection teams are now trying to contain the leak and clean the site.
The pipeline carries diesel, petrol and gas from the Sines refinery to the Aveiras storage depot.
Thefts like this are common in some African countries, often leading to explosions that kill hundreds, but this kind of crime is almost unheard of in Portugal.