Aug 18, 2009 12:15 am US/Pacific
Oil Sheen In SF Bay Near Treasure Island
SAN FRANCISCO (CBS 5 / AP / BCN) ―
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A substance floats on the surface of the water near Treasure Island.
CBS
Crews were contained an oil sheen Monday near a sunken tugboat in the San Francisco Bay near Treasure Island, according to the U.S. Coast Guard.
A 400-foot debris field and an oil sheen stretching several hundred yards was reported around noon along the eastern side of Treasure Island, near the decommissioned naval tug U.S.S. Wenonah.
The Coast Guard contracted a private company to clean up the sheen, which Coast Guard Lt. jg Jeremy Pichette said reached the Berkeley Marina by about 3:30 p.m.
Tim Parker, founder and president of Parker Diving and Salvation, the company contracted to clean up the sheen, said he estimated 25 gallons of diesel and five to 10 gallons of lube oil were spilled.
He said the oil was contained in about 500 feet of containment boom, and now 450 feet of absorbent boom are being used to clean up the leak.
Parker said his company gets calls to clean up pollution caused by sunken vessels two or three times per month, and the current sheen is a medium-sized job.
He said there's not anything complicated or unique about its cleanup.
"It's pretty straight-forward," Parker said from the site of the spill. "There might be some leakage for the next couple of days, but it will probably work its way out. We will monitor it a couple of times per day."
The Coast Guard provided the initial cleanup materials for the sheen, including absorbent boom, and dispatched an 87-foot patrol boat, a 41-foot utility boat and a helicopter.
The Wenonah was taken out of commission in 1974 after being used by the U.S. Navy as a harbor tug for 33 years.
Coast Guard Lt. Jeremy Pichette said crews and pollution investigators responded with an absorbent boom and other cleanup materials, as well as dispatched an 87-foot patrol boat, a 41-foot utility boat and a helicopter.
While a pedestrian initially called authorities to report that the moored tug was sitting low in the water, Pichette said the vessel was resting on the bottom with only her mast showing by late afternoon.
(© CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. The Associated Press and Bay City News contributed to this report.)
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