Shetland oil spill. A dead cormorant (Phalacrocorax sp.) washed ashore on a beach in Shetland. The bird was killed by oil spilt from the tanker MV Braer, which ran aground in Quendale Bay, Shetland Islands, during bad weather in January 1993. About 80,000 tonnes of light crude oil spilt into the sea forming a large slick. Continuing storms, sometimes reaching hurricane force, hampered pollution control and recovery operations. The local marine ecosystem, seal and salmon populations as well as birds, was severely affected.