Flower Gardens Banks National Marine Sanctuary News

The Coast Guard was responding to an oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico on February 16, 140 miles southeast of Galveston, Texas. The spill is located approximately 30 miles south of the Flower Gardens Banks National Marine Sanctuary, an environmentally sensitive area. At 4:28 a.m. a watchstander at Coast Guard Marine Safety Unit Galveston received a call from the master of the Grady Fagan, a 193-ft offshore supply ship. The master reported that the Grady Fagan hit the rig Ocean Star as it was preparing to offload supplies. The ship was holed below the water line in its starboard fuel tank, the collision also caused a 2-inch gash above the water line. An unknown amount of diesel fuel has leaked from the ship. The fuel tank held 9,000 gallons of diesel fuel.