By SHANNON HAUGLAND
Sentinel Staff Writer
The tugboat Western Mariner that ran aground last week in Neva Strait has been refloated and will soon be headed for Sitka, the Department of Environmental Conservation said this morning.
The 83-foot tugboat Western Mariner is rafted to the tugboat Salvation after it was pulled off the rocks just prior to the noon high tide today in Neva Strait. The tugboat Wendy O, pictured at rear, assisted in the operation to refloat the Western Mariner, which had been grounded since early Wednesday morning about 17 miles northwest of Sitka. A light oil sheen was still visible in Neva Strait today.
(Sentinel Photo by James Poulson)
The environmental assessment and cleanup of the fuel spill that resulted from the grounding is continuing, but DEC on-site coordinator Rachael Krajewski said she wanted to share the news about the refloating that she’d received from Global Diving and Salvage Company.
“It is safely afloat,” she said. The salvage companies are continuing their work on the tug, including inspections of the hull, in preparation for moving the vessel.
The recovery plan calls for the buoyancy lift bags to be removed in preparation for the boat’s transit to Sitka, perhaps today, Krajewski said.
The 83-foot tugboat went aground last Monday, after it lost steering in Neva Strait and was rammed by the loaded container barge it was towing. An unknown amount of fuel was spilled from a ruptured tank, but “source control” has been achieved and no fuel has been seen leaving the vessel since March 24, DEC said. The agency said 32,080 gallons of clean fuel was transferred from the vessel and 11,625 gallons of mixed oil and water were recovered from inside the hull.
DEC is part of the Unified Command on the response, along with the U.S. Coast Guard and tug owner, Western Towboat Company. Multiple other agencies, tribal governments and private companies (including Hanson Maritime of Sitka) are involved in the response.
Some cleanup efforts are winding up but Krajewski said plans in the works for today include “beach deluge operations” by SEAPRO, which calls for a “high-volume, low-pressure seawater” rinse of the beaches.
Also, she said, the company will place containment boom and absorbent materials to collect any diesel that is rinsed off from the beach from the “beach deluge” operation.
“The folks on scene are going to be monitoring the activity every step of the way,” Krajewski said, including an observer from the U.S. Coast Guard.
The Department of Health and Social Services noted that diesel fuel can contaminate species harvested as food, including shellfish, kelp and algae and herring roe. Potential impacts on food sources are presumed to be greatest in the immediate vicinity of the spill source and less as distance increases, DHSS said.
The department said that the sheen was seen as far as southern Salisbury Sound, into Krestof Sound, the north end of the Magoun islands and into Olga Strait.
The department said that most diesel spills in open water rapidly evaporate and naturally disperse within days but may linger for longer and be visible as surface sheen.
“Diesel fuel components can also adhere to fine-grained sediments such as those found in tidal mudflats, which can increase retention time and allow for re-floated diesel to cause additional sheening. Diesel is unlikely to adhere to bedrock, especially in areas with strong flushing by tidal currents,” DEC said.
DHSS gave this advice to subsistence harvesters in the area impacted by the diesel spill:
– Do not harvest any shellfish, herring roe, or kelp/algae from Neva Strait or St. John Baptist Bay at this time.
– Do not eat any harvested food if you see, smell or taste oil on it.
– Avoid setting gear or harvesting wherever oil and/or sheens can be seen or smelled on the beach or water.
– Relocate harvesting efforts outside of the area where surface sheen has been observed, to the extent practical.
Those with questions may call DHSS at 907-269-8000.
