Oil spill at Port Manatee causes more than 19,000 gallons of contaminated water
The United States Coast Guard is investigating a crude oil spill at Port Manatee that resulted in a cleanup over the weekend of more than 19,000 gallons of oil-slicked water, according to a Coast Guard spokesperson. That’s enough to fill roughly six concrete mixer trucks.
The spill was first reported to the Coast Guard’s call center on Friday, and cleanup crews arrived on the scene that day to begin a multiday cleanup effort, according to spokesperson Nicole Groll. The source of the oil, including the responsible party, was still under investigation as of Tuesday.
While the Coast Guard is working to contain the spill to inside the port, a full-time fishing charter captain told the Tampa Bay Times he was driving through oil-sheened water and coin-sized clumps of sludge Saturday near the port as he was out in Tampa Bay trying to catch redfish and snook.
Todd Young, owner and charter captain of Reel Memories, said he launched his boat Saturday morning from Cockroach Bay for a day of fishing. When he made it near the port later in the day, his fishing line and the sides of his 22-foot boat were coated in oil.
“There was a steady film across the water, and clumps of oil that were silver-dollar-sized,” Young said in an interview with the Times on Tuesday morning. He shared photos of his boat that appear to show oil staining the hull.
Young said when he saw the oil, “I took off out of there.”
Responders placed oil booms, or temporary floating barriers designed to contain oil spills, in the water around the port, Groll said. Since cleanup began Friday, at least 15 tons of oily debris, including booms meant to curb the spill, were removed from the polluted waters.
“We don’t know how much oil was actually released,” Groll said in an interview Tuesday morning. “There’s been no new oil, and what’s being vacuumed up is the oil on top of the water and oil itself, because oil floats to the surface.”
During the first night of cleanup on Friday, crews used an oil boom, stretching more than 1,000 feet long, to scoop roughly 4,500 gallons of oil-water mixture, according to the Coast Guard. On Saturday and Sunday, crews cleared a combined 10,200 gallons. And on Monday, crews cleared another 4,400 gallons from the port.
Cleanup crews are also working to clean off any ship hulls that were slimed by the oil. Cleanup will continue until crews are sure all oil is removed, according to the Coast Guard.
A spokesperson for Port Manatee directed all questions to the Coast Guard and did not provide any immediate information about the spill’s cause or when the spill began.
In a social media post Monday afternoon, Rep. Vern Buchanan, R-Sarasota, said he spoke with port officials about the “deeply disturbing” spill at the port.
“While no determination has been made as to the source of the spill yet, you can rest assured that I will continue to monitor the issue closely and work to hold any potential bad actors accountable,” Buchanan wrote.
“Our local waterways, environment and marine life are too important to area residents and Florida’s tourism-based economy to ignore this problem,” Buchanan said.
The Coast Guard had a message for recreators and boaters in the area of the port Tuesday: “Please steer clear of the area,” Groll said. “Everything’s been contained inside of the port.” But if the public sees pollution, they should report it to the National Response Center.
The public can reach the center to report a spill by calling 800-424-8802.
