SEABIRDS contaminated by fuel from the stricken container ship Napoli have been rescued from Teignmouth and Shaldon beaches. Volunteers scoured the shoreline fearing that the birds had been blown in by the north east wind. Three have been recovered from Shaldon, one from Teignmouth and one from Dawlish. They are in the care of Teignmouth-based South Devon Seabird Trust along with others brought from Branscombe beach, where a massive clean-up operation is taking place. By Tuesday, 12 birds had been taken in, said trust founder Jean Bradford. 'One bird was brought to us late one night by a fireman who had picked him up off the beach at Branscombe. 'Our volunteers have been looking along the beaches from Dawlish to Shaldon. They have been coming in from all along the coast because the wind has changed direction. 'There's no doubt that they have all been oiled by the Napoli. They are all coated in the same heavy fuel oil,' she said. Each bird costs about £15 each a day to care for and will stay at the centre for about a month. About 25 birds that were due for release this week will remain at the centre because of the contamination from the stricken vessel. 'The birds are very traumatised when they arrive, so we try and calm them down and feed them sprats at hourly intervals. 'When they are settled after about three days, we clean the birds unless they are very contaminated.' The birds are then released from Teignmouth pier. The incident has swelled numbers at the centre, and more are likely to arrive over the next few days. About 70 per cent of birds successfully return to the wild. 'Without organisations like us, it would be very bad news for the birds. 'We have taken a lot of calls and we work closely with the RSPCA and if it wasn't for that, the birds would be a lot worse off,' she said. Teignbridge Council resort staff and rangers at Dawlish Warren are on the lookout for debris from the stricken vessel. The council is prepared for an 'outside chance' of some debris washing on to Teignbridge shores.
