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03/03/2010: "Sunk Boat Saved"

(photo by William Wertz)

The the 45-foot live-a-board boat that virtually sunk in the Port of Friday Harbor late yesterday afternoon is -as shown above- back where it belongs, floating in the water.

Terry Whalen's A1Marine Service was called by the owner to re-float the wood boat, which was successful accomplished, and it appears that any gas or oil spill was slight and controlled by containment floats.

Trained spill responders with Islands' Oil Spill Association worked on recovering much of the 100 gals. of diesel that was on the vessel when it sank.

The containment sorbent that was deployed around the vessel did indeed contain the fuel but sorbent pads were deployed inside the boom by IOSA responders within a few hours of the time of sinking, and those same responders continued to recover fuel in the sorbent pads and monitor the site until dark.

They were back this morning at break of dawn and a total of 4 IOSA responders worked through the morning and into the afternoon continuing to recover the diesel that leaked from the vessel as she was being prepared for raising.

IOSA is San Juan County's only oil spill response organization; we are a non-profit, community-based group and all our responders started out as volunteers who came to classes and drills to get the training required to be an oil spill responder. We love our responders and love for them to get credit for the time and energy they give to this community effort to keep our waters clean, as well as acknowledgement for the hard work they do when a response is called for, as it was yesterday and today at the Port of Friday Harbor.