No one was injured when an offshore service vessel (OSV) ran aground Wednesday morning on the Calcasieu Ship Channel jetties at Cameron, La., and the three-man crew stayed on board as salvage efforts evolved, Coast Guard officials said.
The 135’x26’x6’ Miss Lynda, operated by Abe’s Boat Rentals, Inc., Belle Chasse, La., was carrying four passengers, construction cargo, and 4,300 gals. of fuel and 100 gals. of oil products when it went aground. Coast Guard operators at Vessel Traffic Service Port Arthur, Texas, overheard radio reports that the boat was stuck, and the Coast Guard Marine Safety Unit Lake Charles incident response unit responded along with boat crews from the Lake Charles station.
"It ran up about 20 feet and punctured it pretty high up on the forward compartment," a Coast Guard spokesman said late Wednesday afternoon.
Damage to the vessel was reported about 5’ above the waterline, but the Miss Lynda did not take on water and no pollution was detected. The four passengers were taken off by the utility vessel Sally D, and the crew stayed aboard while salvage plans were developed. There was no impact to traffic in the Calcasieu Ship Channel, the Coast Guard said.
Also on Wednesday, the 64’x24’3”x8’3” towboat Tom Rogers sank at a pier near Wickliffe, Ky.
The Coast Guard said it received a report that the vessel capsized and sank at 11:35 p.m. Wednesday at mile marker 951 on the Lower Mississippi River with about 3,500 gallons of diesel on board.
McKinney Salvage has been contracted to remove the vessel, which is owned by Paducah, Ky.-based James Marine.
SWS Environmental Services, an oil spill response organization, will conduct assessments of the water and land for any potential diesel release. The Coast Guard is investigating the incident.
