Broken pipeline spills 63,000 gallons of oil into Kentucky River
CARROLLTON, Ky. (AP) – A pipeline broke and spilled an estimated 63,000 gallons of crude oil into the Kentucky River early Wednesday, creating a 10-mile slick that crews were racing to contain to keep it from contaminating drinking water. By afternoon the oil spill had crept within five miles of the Ohio River, which several communities in northern Kentucky rely on for their water supplies, said Environmental Protection Agency onsite coordinator Art Smith. The Kentucky River is not used for drinking water in the area.
It was not immediately clear what caused the rupture of the pipeline, which carries about 180,000 barrels of crude daily from the Gulf Coast to refineries in northwest Ohio.
The break, about 50 feet from the north side of the riverbank, sent oil gushing into the waterway, said Dan Harden, area supervisor for Mid-Valley Pipeline Co. of Hebron, a division of Sunoco Inc. and owner of the pipeline.
The pipeline and the river are usually farther apart, but recent rain and snow swelled the waterway.
Workers battled the slick by deploying a boom across the north-flowing Kentucky River to divert the oil to a confined area where the goo could be skimmed from the water.
Harden estimated that the cleanup could take a week, and said Mid-Valley would pay for the work. He did not have an estimated cost.
The spill posed no public health risk, despite a strong diesel fuel odor, Smith said. There were no reports of fires or injuries.
Several dozen geese were seen landing in the spill, and a handful of birds required treatment.
The effect on wildlife may be minimized by the time of year and by the thickness of the oil, which means it will probably float, said Mark Marraccini, a spokesman with the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife.
The pipeline, which runs 1,072 miles from the Gulf of Mexico to refineries in northwest Ohio, is checked periodically by sending electronic devices through the line, Harden said.
The section of line that ruptured was last checked in the past few years, he said.