Coast Guard responds to Saint Patrick oil spill

The oil spill in Womens Bay from the sunken vessel Saint Patrick has been responded to by the Coast Guard, along with a team of divers, according to a Wednesday press release from Coast Guard Sector Anchorage.

The oil spill is suspected to have begun following an earthquake last week that may have disturbed the vessel.

Global Diving & Salvage was contracted by the Coast Guard to team up with the Sector Anchorage Incident Management Division to clean up the spill. Responders have deployed 3,600 feet of sorbent material and 2,080 feet of sorbent boom. 6,000 gallons of oily water mixture have been removed, and some oil waste has been collected from the Saint Patrick herself by divers.

According to a Coast Guard spokesperson quoted in the press release, the response effort will continue until all recoverable oil from the Saint Patrick is removed