Incident News

U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) Southeast Alaska notified the NOAA Scientific Support Coordinator (SSC) of a 300-gallon discharge from a residential home heating oil tank. The fuel had migrated from the crawl space through the driveway and into the storm drain, resulting in a visible sheen at the outfall in Sitka Sound. The incident location is in close proximity to the Sitka National Historic Park and the Sitka Sound Science Center. The USCG has requested the following support: a fuel trajectory based on local currents, if possible; an assessment of resources at risk; a spot weather forecast.

On January 12, 2026, U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) Sector Mobile notified the NOAA Scientific Support Coordinator (SSC) of a fire aboard a salvage auto barge that caught fire and ran aground on the Mobile River downstream of the Cochrane Bridge. The USCG requested support from the NOAA SSC regarding threat assessment and possible modeling of smoke plume. The NOAA SSC provided initial recommendations on air monitoring, as well as spot weather forecast. More details regarding site conditions and the barge cargo are pending further assessment. The USCG Gulf Strike Team is enroute to conduct air monitoring. The SSC remains on standby for further support.

The U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) notified the NOAA Scientific Support Coordinator (SSC) that they would be federalizing the removal of fuel from the F/V Pacific Maid. The vessel sank in October 2025, but the vessel could not be located. In December, a sheen was reported and the vessel was found. USCG requested support from NOAA regarding Endangered Species Act (ESA) Consultation.

NOAA's National Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service (NESDIS) observed an anomaly in satellite imagery which was suspected to be oil. The possible discharge was observed along the track of a suspected source vessel. (The product indicated a potential oil spill that may not be confirmed by ground truth data.) The NOAA Scientific Support Coordinator (SSC) contacted the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) and an investigation was begun. USCG contacted the vessel in question and their shipping agent and determined the anomaly was produced by a legal discharge of palm oil. The vessel master confirmed tank washings were discharged legally 35 NM offshore, meeting all depth, speed, and location requirements stipulated by the regulations and the discharge was fully compliant with MARPOL Annex II. The NOAA SSC communicated this information to the Gulf of the Farallones National Marine Sanctuary and informed NESDIS.

At approximately 0815 hours on January 5, 2026, Texas Petroleum Investment Company (TPIC) discovered a leak on a 6-inch injection line that is associated with the SL 1923 #28 Well northeast of their W-1 Facility in the South Pass 24 Oil & Gas Field (Plaquemines Parish, Louisiana). It was estimated that approximately 15 barrels (630 gallons) of crude had been released in a flotant/roseau cane-based marsh. An assessment conducted on January 5 by Sector New Orleans, and Forefront showed that approximately 0.65 acres of marsh were impacted. An in situ burn (ISB) plan was developed and has been proposed as the most viable, least impactful response strategy and an incident-specific Regional Response Team call was conducted on January 7 to seek approval for use of burn agents/accelerant, if needed. Approval was granted by the State, Environmental Protection Agency, and U.S. Coast Guard with concurrence from the Department of the Interior, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, and NOAA. The ISB is planned to begin January 8 if conditions continue to be suitable. The NOAA Scientific Support Coordinator (SSC) is providing technical support and may be requested on-scene to assist in operations.

At approximately 4am on January 5, 2026, the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) Arctic District Command Center in Juneau received a report that the fishing vessel Arctic Sea was taking on water and aground along the northern shoreline of St. George Island (Pribilof Islands, Bering Sea) with nine people aboard. The Coast Guard launched a helicopter, aircraft, and USCG Cutter Alex Haley and were able to rescue all nine without incident. At the time of the rescue, the vessel had nine inches of water in the galley from an unknown ingress. An oil spill response organization has been contracted to oversee salvage operations of the grounded vessel, which had 50K gallons of diesel on board. The USCG requested NOAA assistance with a spot weather forecast, fuel fate and trajectory, and resources at risk.

U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) Sector Lower Mississippi contacted the NOAA Scientific Support Coordinator (SSC) at 0915 on January 1, 2026 regrading a sunken ITV (inspected towing vessel) in the vicinity of Mile Marker 457 of the Mississippi River. The vessel contains 4,200 gallons of diesel and 100-200 gallons of gear and lube oils. The vessel reportedly sank in 60 feet of water with no observed oil discharges. An OSRO (oil spill response organization) is on scene to conduct containment and recovery operations as needed. The USCG requested from NOAA information on water intakes and sensitive environments downstream of the area. The NOAA SSC provided an ERMA (Environmental Response Management Application) query and an IPaC (Information for Planning and Consultation) report. Further assistance with assessment of salvage operations and/or emergency consultation may be needed.

U.S. Coast Guard Sector Southeast Alaska informed the NOAA Scientific Support Coordinator (SSC) that eight vessels had sunk at the various docks in Juneau, Alaska due to heavy snow and ice between 12/29-12/31/2025. The USCG is coordinating with the owners and harbor masters to defuel and refloat the boats. Phone support was provided to USCG on the persistence of diesel or gasoline in harbors.

On Dec. 29, 2025, U.S. Coast Guard Sector Mobile contacted the NOAA Scientific Support Coordinator (SSC) regarding a fugitive air release of Hydrogen Sulfide (H2S) gas from the Chevron Pascagoula refinery. The release was reported to be ~115 lbs of H2S. The SSC provided hazard assessment and recommendations for monitoring and source confirmation. Upon follow-up with Chevron personnel, the source was reported to have been secured and no levels of H2S were observed above any action limits. No further support is anticipated.

The NOAA Scientific Support Coordinator was notified by U.S. Coast Guard Marine Safety Detachment Santa Barbara that an approximately 45-foot sailboat has beached near East Beach in Santa Barbara, California. The U.S. Coast Guard intends to remove all hazardous materials and fuel on board if it is safe to do so. No additional support has been requested at this time.

The OR&R Hazmat Duty Officer received a call from the answering service on the morning of December 15, 2025. The NOAA Scientific Support Coordinator (SSC) followed up with a U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) contact and was notified that an18-foot fiberglass vessel was adrift near Dillon Beach, last spotted Saturday, December 13, and was involved in a search and rescue operation. No support was requested. An estimated 3 gallons of gas was still on board.

U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) MSU Valdez notified the Alaska Scientific Support Coordinator (SSC) regarding a vessel grounding that occurred in western Prince William Sound on Friday, December 5, 2025. All persons onboard were rescued. Due to severe weather, recovery operations were delayed. The USCG subsequently informed the SSC that the Responsible Party (RP) has been unable to locate the vessel. If the vessel is not located, USCG did not plan any further action. They asked the SSC to confirm that the ~50 gallons of fuel would quickly dissipate, which she confirmed.

Around 0800 on July 26, U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) District 1 notified the New England Scientific Support Coordinator (SSC) that there was a dielectric fluid discharge in the Mill River area of East Rockaway, New York with a potential total release of 2,000 gallons.

On November 23, 2025, an asset of Hilcorp released an unknown quantity of crude oil into Terrebonne Bay, Louisiana. The release produced a 2-mile slick/sheen. The release has been secured. An Oil Spill Response Organization (OSRO) was onsite. The U.S. Coast Guard requested a fate and trajectory analysis from NOAA.

The NOAA Scientific Support Coordinator (SSC) was notified by U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) Sector Los Angeles/Long Beach that a fire had broken out on the container ship “ONE Henry Hudson” docked at Birth 218 at the Yusen Terminal at the Port of Los Angeles. Los Angeles Fire Department (LAFD) is currently working to extinguish the fire. No casualties have been reported. At the request of USCG, the NOAA scientific support team is currently reviewing the vessel’s cargo manifest to assess the presence of potentially hazardous materials.

NOAA Fisheries Protected Resources Division (PRD) in Gloucester, MA requested drift analyses and trajectory for a dead sperm whale that washed ashore on Nantucket, Massachusetts. The whale is currently secured to the beach and PRD is looking to understand where it may float if released.

On Monday, November 17 at 1200, Washington State Department of Ecology reported a sunk vessel off Grays Harbor, Washington, leaving a floating debris field. Olympic Coast National Marine Sanctuary requested information on the vessel and associated debris location. NOAA OR&R was asked for a drift analysis for the debris field.

On November 14, 2025, the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) received National Response Center report #1447893 describing a mystery sheen in Breton Sound. USCG requested NOAA support to identify the likely direction of origin. A USCG Auxiliary overflight identified a Texas Petroleum Investment Company (TPIC) pipeline as the source and reported that the rainbow and light sheen was not recoverable.

At 1100 local time, Sector Mobile Alabama notified the local NOAA Scientific Support Coordinator (SSC) of a dull sheen, approximately 10 miles long, originating from a pipeline carrying produced water, which may consist of oily water mixture. The SSC on duty was notified. The U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) requested a trajectory to prepare for possible shoreline impacts.

On November 11, 2025, the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) received a National Response Center (NRC) report for a 50-barrel crude oil discharge from a 3-inch Texas Petroleum Investment Company (TPIC) flow line into 1/2 acre of marsh in the South Pass 24 block. The source is secured. An oil spill removal organization (OSRO) is responding. TPIC is requesting an in situ burn. An Incident-Specific Regional Response Team call is scheduled for Nov. 13.