Grounded fishing boat spills 200 gallons of diesel fuel into ocean near Santa Cruz
UPDATE: 8/14/2018 6:37 p.m. A grounded fishing boat in Santa Cruz spilled nearly 200 gallons of diesel fuel into the ocean.
According to the Office of Spill Prevention and Response(OSPR), the 56-foot boat was stuck between rocks near Natural Bridges State Beach Sunday.
The captain of the Pacific Quest and his dog made it ashore safely. However, the surf caused the boat’s fuel line to rupture.
“The leak’s source was secured and there is no visible sheen on the water,” said OSPR.
Crews pumped about 720 gallons of diesel fuel from the vessel, Monday evening.
The OSPR said, “there have been no visibly-oiled wildlife observed.”
Monterey Bay Diving has been hired to conduct debris removal operations. They have been working to clean the mess since Monday.
“For the most part, most of the pieces are on the surface. And so we are having our divers stay on the surface and they tie lines off to the big chunks. And the guys on the boat, the support team, are pulling it in and pulling it onto the boat so we can remove it bring it to the dump,” said Sam McDonald with Monterey Bay Diving.
They said that over 800 pounds of debris have been removed from the bay Monday, and more Tuesday.
Local surfer, Marc Karo, voiced his concern on the issue. “It’s a concern if you’re surfing and, ya know, you’re surfing and you run into the debris … there might be nails or other hazards,” said Karo.
Until all debris has been removed from the water, people are advised to be cautious when out on the water.
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