Coast Guard Continues Monitoring Cleanup on Mississippi River
The Coast Guard has extended the closure of the Mississippi River from mile marker 97, one mile north of the , , , to the , which expands an area of nearly 100 miles. Nearly 420,000 gallons of number 6 fuel oil spilled when an American Commercial Lines barge, which was being pushed by the tug boat Mel Oliver, and the chemical tank ship, Tintomara, collided at approximately 1:30 a.m. Wednesday. More than 45,000 feet of containment boom has been deployed by contractors. Another 45,000 feet of boom is scheduled to be deployed Thursday in the affected areas. All water intake facilities at risk have been protected by boom. Marshlands and environmentally sensitive areas have not been affected, but containment boom is being deployed.
Bow Mariner Investigation Completed
The investigation of the Feb. 28, 2004 sinking of a chemical tank ship off the coast of Virginia has been completed. A press conference is scheduled for Tuesday January 3, 2006, at 10 a.m. to be held at Coast Guard Sector Hampton Roads at 200 Granby Street, in Norfolk. The speaker will be Capt. Robert O' Brien, Captain of the Port of Hampton Roads. He will be accompanied by Jerry Crooks, Chief of Investigations at Sector Hampton Roads. The Bow Mariner, a 570-foot, 40,000-ton tanker exploded with 27 people aboard. It was carrying 3.2 million gallons of industrial-grade ethanol, plus 200,000 gallons of No. 6 fuel oil and 53,000 gallons of diesel oil.
