A sunken tugboat off northern Alabama spilled thousands of gallons of diesel fuel into the Tennessee River over the weekend, prompting evacuations of beaches and advisories to stay out of water.
The Florence, Alabama, police department said in a warning sunday that 3,000 to 5,000 gallons of diesel were dumped into the river and the fuel had begun washing up on the beaches of McFarland Park.
«Officers are currently in McFarland pulling people out of the water who are swimming,» the police department said Sunday. «Please stay out of the water and off the beaches until further notice.»
Authorities had received a report that the tugboat sank Sunday morning.
It’s unclear what caused the boat to sink, George M. Grabryan, director of emergency management for 911 for the city of Florence and Lauderdale County, Alabama, said Monday.
He said no one was aboard the tug at the time and no injuries or deaths have been reported in connection with the incident.
Grabryan said he hopes officials will know sometime this week what caused the ship to sink. Officials have also been in contact with the Florence company that operates the tugboat.
Meanwhile, various agencies, including the Alabama Department of Environmental Management, the Florence fire and police departments, and the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency marine patrol, are conducting an extensive process of cleaning.
Grabryan said the boom, which he described as «a long section of absorbent material», was applied «through the inference towards the port» and around the tug.
He explained that the barrier will «help contain the diesel on the surface» of the water and «will keep everything in a pile, hopefully» to prevent it from spreading.
It is not clear when all the diesel will be able to be cleaned.
On Monday, officials will work with the Coast Guard to develop a plan to raise the sunken ship.
«There is a crane that will be on site today, hopefully to help lift that vessel,» Grabryan said.
«We’re lucky these things don’t happen that often. But they’re bringing the right people here. So we feel great about it,» Grabryan said.