BARGE BREAKS AWAY FROM TUG CROSSING COLUMBIA
R. BAR
(Information on this site is considered to be accurate at
the time of posting, but is subject to change as new information becomes
available.)
The rocky cove just north of the North Head Lighthouse receives full ocean
waves following the successful removal of the Millicoma.
BARGE MILLICOMA TO BE MOVED TO PORTLAND TUESDAY COAST GUARD,
STATE AGENCIES APPROVE TRANSIT PLAN
The Coast Guard, Oregon Department of
Environmental Quality and the Washington State
Department of Ecology have approved a Sause Bros.,
transit plan to move the barge Millicoma to Portland
Tuesday morning.
The barge is scheduled to leave its Pier 2 mooring
in Astoria at
about 8 a.m., for the 100-mile journey
up the Columbia River to Portland,
Ore. The tug
Navajo will conduct the tow with the tug Betsy L.,
assisting. Both tugs were involved in the salvage
operation that freed the barge from a rocky cove
near North Head last week. The Navajo and its tow
will travel at a speed of about three knots. Sause
Bros. officials expect the trip to take about
30-to-36 hours.
Upon arrival in Portland, the
barge will be moored at the Fred Devine Diving &
Salvage dock. Fred Devine is the company that led
the salvage operation that recovered the
Millicoma. Air blowers, placed on the barge during
the salvage, will continue to pump air into cargo
tanks below deck during the tow. This will help to
ensure barge stability. Three salvage experts will
also be aboard the barge, including a barge master
from Sause Bros. and two other specialists from
Fred Devine.
A tow line connecting the barge
MILLICOMA to the tug HOWARD OLSEN parted in severe weather at approximately 8:30
p.m. last night.
The barge was located this morning in a cove near North Head, north of the
Columbia River mouth in Washington. The barge has been heavily damaged according
to Gary Faber of Foss Maritime, the company that owns the tug.
“We have contacted the Coast Guard, Washington Department of Ecology and Oregon
Department of Environmental Quality. We have response personnel on scene to
retrieve the barge when the severe weather breaks and allows us access to the
barge.”
Faber also said that Foss has contacted two environmental response companies,
Marine Spill Response Corporation (MSRC) and National Response Corporation
(NRC). NRC is sending a response team to the scene in the event of any spill.
Faber noted that while the barge cargo tanks are empty and clean, there is
approximately 5,000 gallons of diesel fuel in a double hulled tank on the barge
that could release diesel into the environment. That is the focus of the
response at this time.
The Coast Guard reports that no fuel has leaked from the barge. For more
information see the full news release.
