KTUU.com | Alaska's news and information source | Tug hits Bligh Reef, leaks diesel into PWS

Tug hits Bligh Reef, leaks diesel into PWS

by Jason Lamb
Thursday, December 24, 2009

ANCHORAGE, Alaska -- Twenty years after it was the site of one of the worst environmental disasters in United States history, Bligh Reef is again the scene of a maritime mishap.

A 136-foot tug boat on an ice survey in Prince William Sound ran aground on Bligh Reef Wednesday night, rupturing its fuel tanks and spilling an estimated 100 gallons diesel fuel into the sound, according to the Coast Guard. No one was injured.

The Pathfinder -- which won an environmental safety award earlier this month for operating 32 years without incident -- was carrying 33,500 gallons of fuel at the time of the grounding. A contracted dive team reported extensive damage to the hull, including a four- to five-foot section of the keel missing.

After the Pathfinder freed itself from the reef it moved into deeper water and deployed 200 feet of containment boom. A three-mile-long light silver sheen of diesel 30 yards wide was visible east of Glacier Island.

An oil response vessel from Valdez skimmed the water in the vicinity of the sheen, but after nearly 24 hours had only recovered a gallon and a half of diesel. The Coast Guard reports that the Pathfinder is no longer sheening.

"Our main goal right now is recovery and making sure that if there's anything to be recovered, that it is recovered in the most expeditious manner," Coast Guard Petty Officer John-Paul Rios said in a phone interview.

A spokesperson for Crowley Marine Services, which owns the Pathfinder, said that a plan is being prepared to lighter the fuel tanks as early as Thursday night, depending on lighting conditions. After the remaining fuel is removed the Pathfinder will be transported back to Valdez.

In March of 1989 the Exxon Valdez oil tanker grounded itself on Bligh Reef, dumping 11 million gallons of crude oil.

On Wednesday at 6:14 p.m. the Pathfinder ran into the reef, despite a bevy of safety measures put in place after the Exxon Valdez, including the use of tugs like the Pathfinder to escort ships in and out of the harbor.

The Pathfinder itself is used to locate ice that may have calved off Columbia Glacier before tankers set sail from the Port of Valdez.

The Coast Guard says it's still trying to piece together how it all happened, but alcohol -- a contributing factor to the Exxon Valdez disaster -- was ruled out.

"We did test all six of the individuals on board for alcohol, and it all came back negative," Rios said. "Other than that, it's still under investigation."

Coast Guard crews say whatever water contamination there is it's a better situation than if it were crude oil released.

"We don't know exactly how much is inside the water right now, but diesel spills usually evaporate and disperse within a day or less," Rios said.

With the diesel spill apparently contained and operations under way to remove the remaining fuel from the Pathfinder, questions must now be answered as to how this happened again.

"It is an interesting irony -- you'd think of all the rocks someone would hit, the most famous rock in Prince William Sound would be the last one," said Stan Jones, director of external affairs for the Prince William Sound Regional Citizens' Advisory Council. "Why was the Coast Guard Vessel Traffic Center in Valdez not able to see the tug getting close to the reef and say, ‘Hey guys, what's up?'"

The Coast Guard station in charge of the area is the Vessel Traffic System in Valdez. A GPS system and powerful cameras show the location, course and speed of vessels in the sound.

"We can pick up the ship on camera, we can pick up the ship on GPS, and that signal where that ship is within 200 feet of the track line," Cmdr. Matt Jones said during a February interview to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the Exxon Valdez oil spill.

With all the technology there are plenty of questions for the Coast Guard.

"It is not uncommon for these smaller tugs to be operating very close to the shore than the very large vessels and tankers that have to stay in the traffic lanes," Lt. Erin Christensen said. "The tugs do not have to -- it wouldn't ring any alarms."

The Pathfinder is part of the Ship Escort/Response Vessel System managed by Alyeska Pipeline Service Co., a program started after the Exxon Valdez oil spill.

Contact Jason Lamb at jlamb@ktuu.com