Galveston Bay oil spill threatens bird migration

McALLEN, Texas (AP) — Crews were working through the night after a barge carrying nearly a million gallons of especially thick, sticky oil collided with a ship in Galveston Bay, leaking an unknown amount of the fuel into the popular bird habitat as the peak of the migratory shorebird season was approaching.

Booms were brought in to try to contain the spill, which the Coast Guard said was reported at around 12:30 p.m. Saturday by the captain of the 585-foot ship, Summer Wind. Coast Guard officials said the spill hadn't been contained as of 10 p.m., and the collision was still being investigated.

The Coast Guard says the ship collided with a barge carrying 924,000 gallons of marine fuel oil. It didn't give an estimate of how much fuel had spilled into the bay.

Source: missoulian.com