Situation Unit News

The Coast Guard Foundation, a nonprofit organization committed to the education and welfare of Coast Guard members and their families, announced today the details of its Annual Tribute to the 8th Coast Guard District. To be held on Friday, March 4 in New Orleans, Coast Guard Sector Mobile will be honored at the event for their skill and leadership in organizing a mass search and rescue operation on April 25, 2015. An unforeseen storm on that day struck Mobile Bay and nearby Mississippi Sound with tropical force winds and waves, grounding a 600-foot tanker and impacting the 117 sailboats participating in a race. In total, more than 470 sailors and crew were in the Bay that afternoon as the storm whipped up with little warning, creating a chaotic scene as competitors scrambled to react.

The unified response to the collision and oil spill from the tankship Eagle Otome continues. To date, more than 9,600 barrels of oil/water mixture has been recovered, evaporated or dispersed naturally of the 11,000 barrels spilled. Current response assets include 88 oil skimmers, 6 oil vacuum vehicles and 114,545 feet of containment boom. As the majority of the on-water oil has been recovered, the operation will begin to focus on shoreline clean-up and restoration. Vessel traffic and facility numbers have returned to pre-incident status. Vessel Traffic Service is managing traffic.