Tourists at the high-end resorts on Thailand’s Koh Samet Island are being told to stay away from the beach because of a massive oil spill.

The resort island draws tourists from all over the world because of its famous white sand beaches, and in fact is about the only reason why the tourists are there.  But those beaches have been fouled by wave after wave of black crude, despite continuous attempts to clean up the oil.

About 50,000 liters of crude leaked from a pipeline owned by the state energy agency into the Gulf of Thailand around 20 kilometers southeast of the capital, Bangkok.  PTT Global Chemical Pcl estimates that about 5,000 liters remain to be cleaned.

About 200 soldiers in white chemical proof jumpsuits have been deployed to help clean it up.