Coast Guard members from the Incident Management Division and the Response Department at Sector Puget Sound in Seattle oversee the clean up operations of two derelict vessels in Port Orchard, Wash., Jan. 14, 2016.
With one vessel on the beach and one tied to a mooring ball off shore, the Coast Guard opened the Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund for $15,000, hired Global Diving and Salvage to remove the remaining petroleum products from the two vessels, and notified the Department of Natural Resources Derelict Vessel Removal Program and Washington State Ecology to coordinate further response efforts.
U.S. Coast Guard video by Petty Officer 3rd Class Amanda Norcross and Seaman Sarah Wilson.
Petty Officer 2nd Class Nicholas Debrum, a marine science technician, and Cmdr. Brian Meier, chief of response, Sector Puget Sound, discuss incident management operations after arriving on scene to oversee pollution cleanup from two derelict vessels in Port Orchard, Wash., Jan. 14, 2016.
Sector Puget Sound contracted Global Salvage and Diving to clean up the fuel release after receiving an anonymous report of an oily sheen around the abandoned vessels.
U.S. Coast Guard photo by Seaman Sarah Wilson.
Employees of Global Diving and Salvage arrive on scene to begin pollution cleanup operations from two abandoned vessels near Port Orchard, Wash., Jan. 14, 2016.
Vessel owners who want to relinquish responsibility for their boats can contact the Washington Department of Natural Resources and apply for the vessel turn-in program, which properly disposes of vessels to prevent environmental damage.
U.S. Coast Guard photo by Seaman Sarah Wilson.
Tyler Edwards and Curtis Chevalier, employees of Global Salvage and Diving, prepare to pump the bilge of an abandoned vessel that was reportedly releasing oil near Port Orchard, Wash., Jan 14, 2016.
Pollution responders at Coast Guard Sector Puget Sound investigated a report of an oily sheen coming from two abandoned vessels and contracted Global Salvage and Diving to remove all remaining petroleum products from the two vessels.
U.S. Coast Guard photo by Seaman Sarah Wilson.
Pat Mahony and Tyler Edwards, technicians from Global Diving and Salvage’s Pacific Northwest region, sound a tank onboard a derelict vessel as part of the vessel’s clean up operation in Port Orchard, Wash., Jan. 14, 2016.
After discovering the vessels the day prior the Coast Guard hired Global Diving and Salvage to remove all remaining petroleum products from the two derelicts.
U.S. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer 3rd Class Amanda Norcross.
Lt. j.g. Madeline Ede and Petty Officer 2nd Class Nicholas Debrum, investigators from the Incident Management Division at Sector Puget Sound in Seattle, and Cmdr. Brian Meier, chief of response at sector, discuss with one another before the clean up operation of two derelict vessels in Port Orchard, Jan. 14, 2016.
The derelicts were discovered when investigators responded to an anonymous report of a vessel discharging mixed oil into the water the day prior.
U.S. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer 3rd Class Amanda Norcross.
SEATTLE — Coast Guard members from the Incident Management Division and the Response Department at Sector Puget Sound in Seattle oversaw the clean up operations of two derelict vessels in Port Orchard, Thursday.
Global Diving and Salvage technicians, who were contracted using funds from the Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund, safely removed all remaining petroleum products from the vessels.
"Our goal is to safely remove any remaining oil from the two vessels to prevent any further damage to the environment," said Petty Officer 2nd Class Nicholas Debrum, a marine science technician at sector IMD.
IMD personnel received an anonymous report on Wednesday of a vessel discharging mixed oils and responded to investigate. They found two vessels upon arrival, one on the beach and one moored off shore. A rainbow sheen was observed coming from the beached vessel.
A nearby property owner told investigators that the two vessels were possibly abandoned by a person who was previously evicted from the property.
Coast Guard investigators are still trying to contact the owner. The current property owner was directed by the Department of Natural Resources to put in a request with Kitsap County to have the vessels removed.