‘People who use the surface water for drinking or other purposes . . . should always be vigilant for oil sheens and refrain from using the water when they see one,’ said Algoma Public Health official
The oil spill that took place on St. Marys River earlier this week has since dissipated, public health officials say.
On late Tuesday night, a 1,000-foot tugboat – Presque Isle – was travelling along the southeast side of Neebish Island when it had manoeuvrability issues before dropping anchor several kilometres upbound to investigate the problem.
According to Algoma Public Health, around 14-20 litres of hydraulic oil was spilled in the incident, resulting in an oil spill that was less than half a kilometre in diameter.
Two days later, the oil sheen is no longer an issue – although people should be on the lookout for such incidents along the river, public health officials say.
“Since the St Marys River is a busy waterway for shipping traffic and recreational water vessels, people who use the surface water for drinking or other purposes – or who use water along the river recreationally – should always be vigilant for oil sheens and refrain from using the water when they see one,” said Nicole Lindahl, manager of emergency preparedness and response at the health unit.
SooToday has reached out to the U.S. Coast Guard and Keystone Shipping for more information on this incident.