Members of the US Coast Guard have detected an oil sheen on the water near the wreckage of the Francis Scott Key Bridge, but they have not yet determined the source of the fuel discharge, according to USCG Petty Officer Kimberly Reaves.
USCG Command Center officials haven’t yet determined whether the sheen is the result of a fuel spill from the ship that collided with the Key bridge, or if it’s from the vehicles on the bridge that fell into the water after the collision, Reaves told CNN. Officials also do not yet know how much fuel has spilled into the water, Reaves added.
A spokesperson from the Environmental Protection Agency told CNN they haven’t received any information from USCG confirming a fuel leak happened. EPA does have an on-scene coordinator ready to assist, according to EPA Region 3 spokesperson Shaun Eagan.
Maryland Department of the Environment officials are conducting water sampling both upriver and downriver of the site of the bridge collapse, according to department spokesperson Jay Apperson.
“We are ready to do whatever we need to do to minimize any effects to the Patapsco River as we work in close coordination with our partner agencies,” Serena McIlwain, Maryland secretary of the environment, said in a statement provided to CNN.
Apperson said the state is coordinating “closely” with the US Coast Guard and other agencies.