Windy, stormy weather complicates clean-up operations for sunken B.C. tug
BELLA BELLA, B.C. — Blustery, wet weather thwarted efforts Thursday to assess the fallout of a sunken tugboat leaking diesel in a remote region off British Columbia’s central coast.
All small boats involved in the salvage effort were ordered to stand down at midday, including crews responsible for environmental sampling, wildlife surveys and shoreline assessment for eventual clean-up operations.
Crews have recovered more than 88,000 of the estimated 200,000 litres of fuel from the Nathan E. Stewart, which ran aground and sank Oct. 13 in Seaforth Channel, about 20 kilometres west of Bella Bella.
A situation report released Thursday afternoon said divers located diesel on the roof of the engine room, which they intend to vacuum out before emptying the boat’s submerged fuel tanks.