KETCHIKAN, Alaska – The Coast Guard responds to a petroleum spill in the Ketchikan Gateway near the Tongass Narrows across from the Ketchikan Airport.
The spill occurred at approximately 11:30 a.m. when a 20-foot container on board an Alaska Marine Line (AML) barge spilled approximately 1000 gallons of a petroleum/soil mix product on the deck of the vessel and into the water. The tug and barge were transiting from Juneau to Ketchikan.
Coast Guard Marine Safety Detachment Ketchikan, Station Ketchikan, and Ketchikan Sea Pro response initiated clean-up efforts.
A Coast Guard helicopter from Air Station Sitka monitored the two-mile, five-foot wide sheen, while two Coast Guard marine investigators conducted an initial investigation.
It is estimated that only 100 gallons of the 1000 gallons of product is actual petroleum.
