UpdateHouston Ship Channel reopened for all daylight transits

28 September 2009 23:10  [Source: ICIS news]

(adds updates throughout)

HOUSTON (ICIS news)--The three-mile portion of the Houston Ship Channel that was closed due to an oil spill reopened at 12:45 hours Houston time (17:45 GMT) on Monday, according to the US Coast Guard.

The Coast Guard said the area between Old Manchester Dock Three and City Dock 27 on the 52-mile channel is now open to all daylight operations and limited night time barge passage.

Authorities closed part of the 52-mile channel following a collision on Friday involving a tanker, Chemical Supplier, which dumped thousands of gallons of No. 6 fuel oil into the waterway.

USCG Captain Marcus Woodring of the Port of Houston said the oil was contained along the shoreline and said it was safe to resume traffic flow through the affected area at slow speeds.

Responders continue to work on cleaning up the remaining oil, which originally was said to be 10,500 gal. The exact amount of oil recovered is unknown, but as of early afternoon Monday, workers had recovered 23,418 gal of an oil and water mixture, Woodring said.

The Coast Guard is conducting an investigation into the chain of events leading up to the incident, Woodring added.

To discuss issues facing the chemical industry go to ICIS connect

By: Lane Kelley
+1 713 525 2653

For the latest chemical news, data and analysis that directly impacts your business sign up for a free trial to ICIS news - the breaking online news service for the global chemical industry.

Get the facts and analysis behind the headlines from our market leading weekly magazine: sign up to a free trial to ICIS Chemical Business.

Printer Friendly