On October 7, 2026, the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) Marine Safety Detachment Ketchikan contacted the NOAA Scientific Support Coordinator (SSC) regarding a mystery sheen in Thorne Bay, Alaska. The Harbor Master reported a sheen near the sea plane dock at the harbor. The source of the sheen is unknown. The USCG is requesting any satellite imagery that may show the extent or origin of the sheen.

U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) Marine Safety Detachment Ketchikan notified the NOAA Scientific Support Coordinator (SSC) regarding a vessel adrift in Clarence Strait near Ketchikan, Alaska. The vessel was being towed by the F/V Locomotion when the Locomotion lost propulsion, causing its prop to foul with the lines. When Station Ketchikan attached a tow line to the Sultan, the towline connection broke and the tow was dropped. The Sultan's location is unknown. USCG requests support in confirming a drift model of Sultan to confirm the USCG Command Center model.

On October 5, 2026, possible oil was observed in satellite imagery provided by NOAA NESDIS (National Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service). This anomaly is unconfirmed as oil. The slick, estimated to be 12 nautical miles long and 0.4 nautical miles at its widest, is believed to be a possible bilge dump, located approximately 78.7 nautical miles west of San Francisco, California.

On September 30, 2026, the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) contacted the NOAA Scientific Support Coordinator (SSC) regarding a helicopter that crashed into the Pacific Ocean 0.2 nautical miles off Pebbly Beach on Catalina Island. Five people were reported to have been aboard the aircraft. Two people have been transported to the hospital. Two deceased persons have been recovered and one person remains missing. Maximum amount of fuel on board is reported to be 131 gallons of Jet-A. USCG press releases: October 1, 2026, Coast Guard, Partners Respond to a Helicopter Crash offshore Santa Catalina Island, https://www.news.uscg.mil/Press-Releases/Article/4615899/coast-guard-partners-respond-to-a-helicopter-crash-offshore-santa-catalina-isla/. October 2, 2026, UPDATE: Coast Guard ends search offshore Santa Catalina Island, https://www.news.uscg.mil/Press-Releases/Article/4617351/update-coast-guard-ends-search-offshore-santa-catalina-island/.

Oil Spill | Elwha, Washington | July 2025 - Present What Happened?

On July 18, 2025, a dual-trailer tanker truck owned and operated by PetroCard rolled over on U.S. Highway 101. It entered Indian Creek in Clallam County, Washington, and discharged petroleum products into the creek, the Elwha River, surface waters, sediments, and soils, and onto adjacent lands. 

On September 28, 2026, the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) contacted the NOAA Scientific Support Coordinator (SSC) regarding the sinking of the F/V Rolfy in Seward, Alaska. The 91-foot vessel sank at I-Dock in Seward Harbor. A USCG-contracted salvage team will be refloating and de-fueling the vessel. The USCG requested NOAA's support with Endangered Species Act (ESA) consultation.

On the morning of September 26, 2026, an estimated 2,000 gallons of #2 home heating oil spilled from a generator near Towson, Maryland. The spill went into a drainage pipe that discharges into the Long Quarter Branch and then into a reservoir. Spill responders were on-scene late Saturday where containment boom was put into place and a vacuum truck was being utilized. U.S. Coast Guard Sector Baltimore requested a fate analysis of the fuel to understand potential evaporation/dispersion rates. NOAA provided the fate analysis, explanatory notes, and information about how diesel fuel behaves when spilled.

On September 28, 2026, the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) notified the NOAA Scientific Support Coordinator (SSC) regarding a trawler that had run aground (when a rope was caught in the propeller) on West Island in the San Joaquin River. The vessel has a fuel capacity of 1,000 gallons of diesel but the pilot reported that only 20 gallons were on board. No sheening or discharge has been reported. Salvage options are being explored. USCG Sector San Francisco Bay deployed.

On the evening of September 22, 2026, a Hunter Hawk jet crashed into the Pacific Ocean near Morro Bay, California. The U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) contacted the NOAA Scientific Support Coordinator (SSC), requesting a trajectory analysis for 977 gallons of JP-5 (Jet Propellant-5). Additional information is unavailable at this time.

On September 22, 2026, the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) contacted the NOAA Scientific Support Coordinator (SSC) about the commercial fishing vessel LINDA C that hit the Los Angeles breakwall and sank just outside the main channel on Sunday, September 20. No sheening or signs of discharge have been observed. The USCG is evaluating options and requested a worst-case discharge assessment from OR&R. The owner reported 30 gallons of diesel (maximum capacity 300 gallons) and 10 gallons of hydraulic fluid onboard.

On the afternoon of September 21, 2026, the OR&R Hazmat Duty Officer received a call from the Duty Officer from the city of Bellingham, Washington about an overturned refrigerated hydrogen tank truck. The worst-case discharge for the incident is 1.6 million cubic feet of ambient hydrogen. Although it was overturned, the tank truck does not have any obvious signs of damage or release. Requested products from OR&R are weather forecast and ALOHA air plume modeling.

On the morning of September 16, 2026, U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) Marine Safety Unit Cape Cod contacted the NOAA Scientific Support Coordinator (SSC) regarding a commercial fishing vessel fire south of Nantucket, Massachusetts. No pollution was reported at the time but the USCG was requesting potential trajectory information from NOAA.

On September 14, 2026, the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) notified the NOAA Scientific Support Coordinator (SSC) regarding a fire at the cruise ship terminal pier in Whittier, Alaska. The tour boat Klondike Express also caught fire (with no passengers on board); the fire has since been extinguished. All 2,000 gallons of diesel on the Klondike Express have been accounted for and no sheen is reported. The cruise ship Norwegian Jade was docked at the pier and able to depart the area without damage.

On September 8, 2026, discharge of a sheen was noted at a Creole Operating wellhead in West Cameron Block 2. The wellhead is one mile south of the shoreline. At this time, it is unknown if Creole Operating is responding to this spill. NOAA's Emergency Response Division is assisting with weather forecasts and trajectory analysis.

NOAA NESDIS (National Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service) Satellite Analysis Branch has been tracking several mystery sheens in Eugene Island Block 316 since early August 2026. The U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) and Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) are investigating the source of these sheens, but a source has not yet been identified. NESDIS Satellite Analysis Branch and OR&R's Emergency Response Division are assisting with the investigation.

On September 7, 2026, U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) Sector San Francisco notified the NOAA Scientific Support Coordinator (SSC) that a tanker truck containing asphalt was involved in a vehicle accident and went off the road into Trapper Slough near Area Contingency Plan region 2-974. An unknown amount of asphalt has been discharged from the tanker truck. An oil spill response organization (OSRO) is enroute. NOAA provided information about the behavior of asphalt products when they are spilled.

What Happened?

Hazardous Waste Site | Houston, Texas | 1960s - Present

Oil Spill | Richmond, California | 1917 - Present

Hazardous Waste Site | Trainer, Pennsylvania | 1900 - Present