Traffic Restrictions Lifted on Mississippi River

The safety zone and traffic restrictions in place from markers 936 to 938 on the Mississippi River following a towboat collision and subsequent oil spill have been lifted, according to the U.S. Coast Guard.

 

A section of the lower Mississippi River was closed to all traffic except response vessels last week after two towboats collided Wednesday at Mississippi River mile marker 937, rupturing the cargo tank of a barge carrying slurry oil which discharged approximately 150,000 gallons of oil into the river.

 

Vessels were allowed to begin one-way in the region traffic late last week, according to a notice from AEP River Operations. The first southbound vessel passed Friday night, and northbound vessels began transiting Saturday morning. The last vessels in the queue were cleared Sunday afternoon.

 

Unified command is continuing its response today in the spill zone. Lightering operations have been completed, and the damaged APEX 3508 barge has been removed to a fleeting area for temporary repair and preparation for transit.

 

The Coast Guard said the preparation for cleanup efforts has begun near the initial incident site to remove the submerged clarified slurry oil. Side-scan sonar equipment is being used to locate recoverable product.

 

The Coast Guard and the National Transportation Safety Board are investigating the cause of the incident