Oil spill in Mississippi River leads to clean-up efforts.

Kirby Inland Marine’s barge suffered an oil spill of 3,400 gallons into the Lower Mississippi River near Natchez, Mississippi, on the evening of Saturday 29 May. The Coast Guard Marine Safety Detachment Vicksburg and Lower Mississippi River sector’s pollution responders surveyed the area after Kirby Inland Marine contacted them. The crew of tugboat Leviticus secured the source of the discharge and estimated that 3,402 gallons of product entered the water and another 1,000 gallons discharged but retained on the barge’s deck.

Kirby Inland Marine is working alongside two Oil Spill Removal Organizations (OSROs) to clean up the discharged product. Approximately 1,000 feet of hard and absorbent barriers were deployed on Sunday to contain the product in the water, and an estimated 800 gallons of the oily water mixture were recovered by Monday. There have been no reports of any impact on wildlife.

Commander Ryan S. Rhodes, the federal incident coordinator and commander of the Lower Mississippi River sector, said that the Coast Guard is “working diligently with Kirby Inland Marine and the OSROs to ensure a timely and effective cleanup to mitigate any environmental impact.” The source of the discharge is under investigation.

Source .