Coast Guard, Local Agencies Respond to Reports of Spill in Anacostia River

The Coast Guard has established an incident command post in partnership with the District of Columbia Fire Department, the District Department of the Environment and the Environmental Protection Agency to further investigate reports of a spill along the Anacostia River in Washington, D.C., Tuesday.

The Coast Guard and the fire department have been collecting water samples throughout the day.

The samples are being tested by the EPA and the fire department's hazardous material team.

The fire department crews have deployed containment and sorbent boom in sensitive areas to reduce the risk of contamination farther downstream.

“We are going to continue tracking the material to identify what it is and how to minimize its impact,” said Coast Guard Lt. Cmdr. Randall Brown, the chief of the response department at Coast Guard Sector Baltimore.

The waterways remain open to vessel traffic.

The Coast Guard is investigating the source and cause of the spill.

 

Source: U.S. Coast Guard