Update: Leaking Fishing Vessel Refloated, Towed from Penn Cove

SUMMARY

Incident name: FV Deep Sea Fire

Date of Incident: May 12, 2012 – fire aboard fishing vessel Deep Sea broke out at 11:45 pm

May 13, 2012 - Vessel sank at 6 pm

Location: Penn Cove, near Town of Coupeville, Island County, WA

Product/Quantity: Unknown quantity diesel fuel, other oil products still on vessel

Oil recovered / removed: 3,100 gallons of oil recovered during underwater operations. 1,400 gallons recovered from surface using absorbent pads and boom.

Cause: Fire and flooding – fire cause of under investigation

Responsible Party: Rory Westmoreland, owner Deep Sea
Vessel has been turned over to DNR

The tug Taurus will move the vessel.

Coast Guard Ecology officials determined that the Deep Sea presents no substantial threat of an oil spill. The Coast Guard approved a tow plan for the vessel’s trip to Seattle.

The Taurus and Deep Sea will proceed at up to 6 knots, or about 7 mph. The Deep Sea could reach the Chittenden Locks in Seattle by early afternoon. The Taurus will deliver the Deep Sea to the Stabbert Yacht and Ship dry dock in Ballard for dismantling.

Oil leak on the Deep Sea: From a diver’s helmet camera, we see a dark brown stream of oil flowing up from a spot on the Deep Sea, May 23, 2012. The diver is horizontal, so “up” is to the left. The stream breaks up into globules before the diver moves on. This one of the sources of surface sheen, contained by boom floating over the sunken vessel.

Meanwhile, environmental cleanup crews have started wrapping up efforts to remove oil from the water immediately surrounding the Deep Sea. They also began to remove some of the 5,700 feet of oil-spill containment boom and cleanup materials deployed for the lifting. The crews have conducted these operations since the vessel sank May 13 after a fire.

The state Department of Health also re-opened the shellfish harvest areas north of Mueller Park June 5 after test results showed samples taken from those areas are safe to eat. The area of Penn Cove south of Mueller Park will remain closed until additional test results shows that shellfish there also meet standards. All shellfish harvesting was closed May 15 due to the fuel leaking from the Deep Sea.

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Since the beginning of this week, the Deep Sea floated on its own and underwent inspections to determine its seaworthiness and to locate any remaining pockets of oil for removal.

The larger of the two floating cranes that lifted the Deep Sea is now in Seattle. The Deep Sea is now moored to the smaller crane barge.

Ecology and Coast Guard Officials will decide when the vessel can be towed to a dry dock in Seattle for dismantling. That will occur as soon as weather and sea conditions allow. Forecast predicts winds that will push wave heights to four feet. Safe towing conditions require waves under three feet.

Meanwhile, environmental cleanup crews continued efforts to remove oil from the water immediately surrounding the Deep Sea. Oil trapped in the hull when the vessel rested on its side floated to the surface when floating cranes set the Deep Sea upright before raising it.

On Wednesday, May 23, Global divers documented small releases of oil from the vessel. The team also attached a laminated legal notice from DNR onto the captain’s chair in the wheelhouse, as shown in the video.

View our original report here.

Source: Department of Ecology - State of Wahington - http://www.ecy.wa.gov