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UPDATED: Sunken boat leaks fuel into Fraser River in Mission

Environmental crews are on location,absorbent booms have now been placed around the sunken vessel to contain spill.
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A visible oil sheen can be seen on the river from the air.

The Coast Guard, Western Canada Marine Response Corporation (WCMRC) and an environmental response team are on scene of a fuel spill on the Fraser River in Mission this afternoon (Friday).

The fuel is believed to be leaking from a submerged vessel, but it is unclear how much fuel was onboard the boat.

According to Michelle Imbeau, communications advisor for the coast guard, the vessel is the Queen of East Vancouver, a 40 to 50 foot vessel, that had sunk while tied up near the shore.

A visible oil sheen can be seen on the river from the air.

The spill took place in the area of Donatelli Avenue, by the  Lougheed Highway in Mission.

The layer of pollutant is reported to be less than 0.005 millimetres deep.

Absorbent booms have now been placed around the sunken vessel to contain any further pollutants that may leak.

A Transport Canada overflight earlier this afternoon estimated the sheen (the amount of leaked fuel) to be about 26 litres.

According to Imbeau, a sheen is a very thin layer of pollutant (less than 0.0002 inches or 0.005 mm) floating on the water surface and is the most common form of pollutant seen in the Greater Vancouver area.

The coast guard receives reports of sheen on the waters surrounding Vancouver on a daily basis.

In an email to The Mission Record, Imbeau wrote "In this incident, the apparent owner of the vessel is unwilling to respond, therefore CCG responded. Next steps will involve CCG putting in place an action plan in the absence of the owner. The plan will be to remove the vessel from the river bed, subject to daylight, availability of assets, and weather/tides."

 



Kevin Mills

About the Author: Kevin Mills

I have been a member of the media for the past 34 years and became editor of the Mission Record in February of 2015.
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