Americas News
Suit Filed Over Houston Ship Channel Spill
Fishing businesses and others who have lost money as a result of the ship collision in the Houston Ship Channel Saturday have filed a class action lawsuit, local newspaper the Houston Chronicle reports.
The suit, filed in U.S. District Court in Galveston, Texas, targets ship owners Kirby Inland Marine (Kirby) and Cleopatra Shipping Agency.
The suit says that the spill of oil from a barge pushed by Kirby tow boat Miss Susan had a "wide and devastating effect on Galveston Bay, the Gulf of Mexico and the people who use and depend on it."
The barge sank to the bottom of the channel after colliding with Cleopatra Shipping Agency bulk carrier Summer Wind.
The plaintiffs, who are seeking compensatory and punitive damages, say the ship owners did not exercise reasonable care to make sure the oil was be "expeditiously and adequately" contained around the ships.
The channel was partially reopened Tuesday, but officials said it would take several days to get traffic back to normal.
