Americas News
USCG Responds to Bunker Spill in Columbia River
The U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) Monday said an approximately 250 gallon diesel spill was reported in the water at the Skipanon Marina of the Columbia River following a internal fuel transfer operation conducted by an 86-foot fishing vessel, the Emerald Sea.
The spill is said to have resulted in a 1 mile by 500 yard area of sheening at the marina to which Incident Management Division (IMD) staff were deployed to investigate at about 9 a.m. on Monday.
USCG responders noted that the sheen had begun dissipating by 1 p.m.
"Emerald Sea had since transited to Ilwaco, Washington, where IMD located the crew and requested the master to self-report the spill to Coast Guard National Response Center and return to Skipanon Marina to clean the spill," explained USCG, noting that there was no sheen observed in Ilwaco.
USCG inspectors from IMD in Astoria are said to be monitoring the situation while the crew of the Emerald Sea work with harbormasters to clean the spill with absorbent pads.
USCG says the spill has not presented any hazards to navigation, and no affected wildlife have been reported.
In March, USCG said they were monitoring for signs of a bunker spill after the 5,4881 DWT Panama-flagged bulk carrier Sparna, which was loaded with 218,380 gallons of HFO and 39,380 gallons of marine diesel, grounded in the Columbia River in the state of Washington.
