Salvage teams started pumping crude from a decaying supertanker off the coast of Yemen on Tuesday in the final stages of a long campaign to prevent a devastating oil spill.

The transfer by Dutch specialist Smit Salvage of 1.14m barrels from the 406,600-dwt FSO Safer (built 1976) is expected to take 19 days, said the United Nations, which has paid for the operation after a $129m appeal.