Alaska Trams Bunker Oil Container

Location: AML Dock, Ketchikan, Alaska
Time/Date: The United States Coast Guard (USCG) notified the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation (ADEC) of the incident at approximately 11:55 AM on November 21, 2007. It is unknown when the spill began. The spill was first reported to Alaska Marine Lines by a float plane pilot as the barge was underway near Ketchikan.
Spill Id: 07119932501
Product/ Quantity: Alaska Marine Lines (AML) revised the quantity of oil spilled to be approximately 1200 gallons of oily waste. The oily waste was a mixture of diatomaceous earth and oil recovered during the cleanup of an abandoned bunker oil tank. This estimate is based on the amount of product that has been recovered by SEAPRO personnel and placed into open top fifty-five gallon drum and DOT approved hazmat boxes. Approximately 100 gallons of oily waste may have spilled into the water.
Cause: Approximately 1,000 tons of oil and diatomaceous earth recovered during a fuel tank cleanup in Juneau was being transported in a 20 ft. open top, lined container to Seattle for disposal. The door on the container apparently failed for unknown reasons allowing a portion of the contents to leak on to the deck of the barge, across the deck and into the water. AML and U.S. Coast Guard personnel stated that only one third of the container’s oily waste was solidified. The liner material in the container was unable to prevent the discharge of the oily waste once the door failed.

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