UNIFIED COMMAND
RI Dept of Environment Management
Penn Maritime
The Unified Command will issue a bulletin at 11 A.M. each day, and press releases for any breaking news regarding the oil spill that occurred on July 5 in Narragansett Bay, south of Prudence Island. A Command Center has been established at Pier 2, Coddington Cove, Middletown.
Key phone numbers for obtaining oil spill information and submitting reports are as follows:
|
For General Information |
Joint Information Center, Newport |
847-7573 |
|
To Report Sightings of Oil |
Command Center, Newport |
847-7573 |
|
To Report Wildlife Impacts |
DEM Marine Base |
295-8818 |
|
To File Damage Claims [business losses, property damage] |
Penn Maritime's Claim Office |
800-528-5760 ext. 6444 |
|
Back-ups to General Information Number |
24 - hour DEM Hotline |
222-3070 |
|
To Volunteer |
Save the Bay |
272-3540 |
|
Emergency Fisheries Closure Area Map as of 7/7/00 at 3:30 PM (hit your browser's refresh button) |
||
|
Archive of Prior Bulletins (hit your browser's refresh button) |
||
Status of Spill and Clean-up: More than 80 personnel hired by Penn Maritime are using absorbent material and vacuum trucks along the shoreline. Recovery operations are underway for the sixth day and will continue until the clean-up is completed. There has been no observed floating oil for three days. Approximately 8,500 gallons of decanted oil have been recovered so far. 210 cubic yards of oil soaked absorbents have been containerized.
Effects of Spill on Fishing, Boating and Swimming: Approximately 2,000 acres of Narragansett Bay in the vicinity of the spill remain closed to fishing and shellfishing. The closure will remain in effect until further notice. DEM Environmental Police are actively patrolling the closure area. All other areas of the bay that are traditionally open to fishing and shellfishing remain open. (see linked chart, hit refresh to ensure up-to-date map). Water samples taken from the closed area are being analyzed by a laboratory; the results of that analysis are expected Wednesday.
The Coast Guard has established a safety zone which extends 500 yards off shore from the Coddington Cove breakwater to the Midway Pier.
Swimmers are advised that they might encounter tar balls in portions of lower Narragansett Bay in low concentrations; these should be avoided.
Status of Assessment Activities: The Unified Command conducts frequent overflights and shoreline assessments to gauge the extent of oiling and the progress of cleanups. This morning's overflight has been postponed due to the fog. These surveys document the extent of oiling and are used to formulate the next stage of clean-up priorities.
To date, five (5) swans have died as a result of the spill. Additionally, a total of thirty-one (31) oiled Canada geese have been recovered. Wildlife rescue efforts and the natural resource damage assessment process will continue through the next several weeks.
DEM wildlife biologists will make a concentrated effort to capture oiled birds today. However, the birds are still able to fly, and have become extremely wary. After today, the plan is to initiate a pause in operations to allow the birds some time to lose their skittishness. Biologists will respond to reports of birds in obvious distress.
