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Our dockside interviews along the coast revealed that fishhouse owners and shrimpers are very receptive and enthusiastic about gaining access to information and materials for emergency oil spill containment.
We put together emergency oil and fuel spill
containment kits and distributed the barrels to
docks along the coast. Immediately afterwards,
a shrimp boat sank next door to the Marine
Extension office.
While their words revealed their interest, fishermen's quick response with the Captain Jack revealed the countless benefits of having kits readily available at docks. The first responders in these emergencies will always be fishermen. Georgia's shrimpers have asked us to help them be better prepared.
MAREX prepared 6 emergency oil spill containment kits to be delivered to fishhouses in coastal Georgia in February, 2007
At 4 am on March 1 st , Captain Thurmond and his wife received an emergency call.
The shrimp boat Captain Jack was sinking.
… and over 100 bilge socks.
The bilge socks
harden as they
absorb the red
diesel fuel….
The boom, pillows,
and bilge socks are
all:
• Non-toxic
• Non-carginogenic
• Harmless to wildlife
Around 1pm, MAREX staff offered more supplies to
Captain Thurmond and his volunteer crew.
Although the spill was already well contained, they eagerly
accepted and deployed 150 additional feet of boom.
Even in a storm with countless tasks to accomplish,
they made pollution prevention a top priority.
The following day, when the tide was finally low enough, the crew were able to pump out enough water to raise the Captain Jack to the surface.
This story owes its success to the fast-thinking and
hardworking crew of neighborhood volunteers,
MAREX's bilge sock & emergency oil spill containment
project, and funding from the Georgia DNR.
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