30,000 Gallons Of Fuel Oil Spill In Texas' Neches River During Collision

[hatrack]

HOUSTON — "A collision between a refueling barge and a gasoline tanker on a southeast Texas river spilled more than 30,000 gallons of fuel oil early Monday and halted shipping traffic, the U.S. Coast Guard said.

The Neches River was closed near its mouth, where it empties into Sabine Lake, which feeds into the Gulf of Mexico.

A barge owned by Buffalo Marine Services was pulling along side the Danish-flagged tanker Torm Mary at Sun Anchorage on the Neches when it rammed into its hull, ripping a five-foot long gash in the tanker, Texas General Land Office spokesman Jim Suydam said.

It was not yet known when the river would re-open to traffic, he said. "We'll have a better idea when we get more of the oil cleaned up," said U.S. Coast Guard Chief Warrant Officer Adam."

EDIT

http://www.enn.com/news/2004-08-03/s_26354.asp

[Soloflecks]

1. A "small" spill in Alaska.

http://www.adn.com/front/story/5374926p-5313626c.html

The 338-foot Clipper Odyssey grounded and punctured its hull off Baby Islands east of Unalaska Island shortly before 9:14 p.m. Saturday with 126 passengers and 70 crew members aboard, according to the Coast Guard and a spokesman for the St. Louis-based Clipper Cruise Lines.

Initial reports suggested an unknown amount of light diesel fuel had leaked at the time of the grounding, but no sheen was seen Sunday during a Coast Guard helicopter flight, according to company and Coast Guard officials.

It wasn't clear Sunday how much fuel went into the ocean during the incident. Chief Warrant Officer Roddy Corr on Unalaska told The Associated Press that 5,000 gallons of fuel had leaked, with two of the ship's chambers ruptured and a gray water tank flooded.

But Clipper spokesman Doug Bolnick said the boat had been carrying only 5,000 gallons in a 20,000-gallon tank during the grounding and had spilled a small amount of fuel.

"The Coast Guard is going to be conducting a marine investigation into this to determine what happened," Wilson said.

The boat, on the seventh day of a 12-day trip, was approaching a promising bird-viewing site after dinner when it struck an uncharted rock in about 70 feet of water, Bolnick said in a phone interview from St. Louis on Sunday evening. The boat was moving at 4 to 5 knots and struck with a "crunching sound," Bolnick said.