CNN US News

Oil spill off Texas stretches for miles

Spill

March 19, 1996
Web posted at: 11:10 p.m. EST

GALVESTON, Texas (CNN) -- Hundreds of people worked Tuesday to contain a miles-long oil spill stretching into the Gulf of Mexico. Authorities said more than 200,000 gallons of heavy fuel oil had leaked from a barge that ran aground Monday near Galveston.

The 275-foot barge hit ground in a waterway between Pelican Island and Bolivar Peninsula. The impact ruptured at least two of the vessel's 12 oil storage compartments. The two compartments had held about 176,000 gallons of oil, according to the Buffalo Marine Service Inc., the barge's owner. Two more compartments may also have been damaged, officials said Tuesday, but the remaining eight appeared to be in good shape.

Workers

By Tuesday, the oil was spread into a slick more than 5 miles long, stretching from the mouth of Galveston Bay into the Gulf of Mexico. Initial cleanup efforts were impeded by heavy winds with gusts up to 50 miles per hour. But on Tuesday, the winds subsided. An empty barge was moved alongside the damaged one to remove the remaining oil. More than 300 people and several skimming vessels were at work on the cleanup.

The Texas General Land Office said it was watching the Texas shores for oil contamination, but as of late Tuesday, little had been sighted. Spokeswoman Elna Christopher said some oil had been spotted at the tip of Galveston Island. Crews were on standby to clean oiled sea birds, but officials said only a handful of affected birds had been found.

Bird

The spread of oil towards the shoreline was likely kept to a minimum by protective booms workers placed around the barge and along some of the most sensitive shorelines immediately after the spill.

"It's not a good situation, but we're taking all the steps we possibly can to get the booms in the proper place to protect the environment," said Rich Arnhart, coordinator for the Texas General Land Office.

Buffalo Marine took responsibility for the spill and said it will pay for the cleanup. But the company wouldn't speculate on why the barge ran around, beyond laying partial blame on the high wind. The Coast Guard said it last inspected the barge in January.

Although considered a major spill, this spill is small compared to other relatively recent spills. One of the area's worst spills happened in June 1990, when the Norwegian tanker Mega Borg leaked 4.3 million gallons of crude oil about 60 miles off the coast of Galveston.

Related Stories

Related Sites


Feedback

Send us your comments.
Selected responses are posted daily.


[Imagemap]
| CONTENTS | SEARCH | CNN HOME PAGE | MAIN US NEWS PAGE |

Copyright © 1996 Cable News Network, Inc.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
External sites are not endorsed by CNN Interactive.