Coast Guard Responds to Oil Spill in Delaware Bay

The Coast Guard, New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection and the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control are working together to clean up an oil spill. The crewman onboard the tug Liberty notified the Coast Guard that oil was floating in the upper Delaware Bay. Marine science technicians from Sector Delaware Bay and a helicopter from Air Station Atlantic City were deployed to survey the scene and begin initial assessments. The sheen is a narrow band of oil five to six miles long, near the center of the bay in the main shipping channel, east of Port Mahon in Kent County, DE. The clean-up efforts of the spill began after the determination to use federal funds was made. Funds from the Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund (OSLTF) will be used. Oil skimming vessels from Miller Environmental, Northstar Marine and the Delaware Bay and River Cooperative have been contracted for recovery and clean-up operations. The cause of the spill is under investigation.