Oil Spillage: 9,000 barrels of Reformate wasted in a collide attack

Harboursandport.com: Texas - About 9,000 barrels of reformate spilled into the Houston Ship Channel after a collision on Friday between a 755-foot oil tanker and a tug pushing two barges.

The damaged vessel

An estimated 25,000 barrels of gasoline blend stock were loaded on each barge, a Coast Guard statement said.

According to an online source, the impact capsized one barge, damaged the other and triggered the leak of gasoline blending stock that the barges were carrying, the United States Coast Guard said.

The barges pushed by the towing vessel Voyager were loaded with the gasoline blending component reformate, which leaked into the water after the collision near Bayport, Texas, officials said.

About 9,000 barrels of reformate spilled into the channel, according to incident commander Jim Guidry, an executive with Kirby Inland Marine, owner and operator of the Voyager.

There were no reported injuries during the collision with the tanker.

Federal, state and local agencies are involved in the cleanup and environmental monitoring. A statement from those agencies Sunday said that the damaged barges have been secured and efforts were underway to remove cargo from the barges.

"Work is expected to continue throughout the day with an established priority of ensuring the protection of (Galveston) Bay from the additional release of product," the statement said.