Two barges collided around 1 a.m.in Texas’ Houston Ship Channel, resulting in a massive fire and large quantity of petroleum naphtha being spilled.
Advertisement
The collision happened as two tugboats were pushing a pair of barges down the water.
The Intracoastal Waterway (ICW), which runs between barrier islands and the coast of the US mainland in the Gulf of Mexico, was shut from where it intersects the Houston Ship Channel to Mile Market 350 on the ICW. The collision did not affect traffic in the ship channel. One of the barges involved was carrying almost 1 million gallons of petroleum and ruptured upon the impact, causing a fire, Petty Officer Andy Kendrick told NBC News. Fire boats rushed to the scene and extinguished the fire after several hours.
A tugboat that lost power in its engine, according to an article in the Houston Chronicle, towed one of the barges. No cargo was spilled nor injuries sustained, reports say. However most incidents are cleared up quickly and major spills are relatively rare.
Advertisement
“The ICW on the Bolivar (Peninsula) side is closed, no effect on the Ship Channel”, the dispatcher said. Petroleum naphtha is a colorless liquid with a gasoline or kerosene-like odor. He said they do not anticipate any danger to residents in the area.
