Petroleum barge collision sparks fire in Houston Ship Channel
Officials not sure if petroleum barge leaked naphtha into water
Fire aboard a petroleum barge in the Houston Ship Channel was extinguished about four hours after blaze broke out. NBC News photo.
GALVESTON, Texas – Emergency personnel have extinguished a fire aboard a barge carrying petroleum after the vessel collided with another barge near the entrance to the Houston Ship Channel.
U.S. Coast Guard Petty Officer Andrew Kendrick says some nearby ship traffic was suspended but that traffic along the Houston Ship Channel was not affected.
He says two tugboats were pushing the barges early Monday morning near the Bolivar Peninsula when one of the tugboats lost power. The barge it was pushing then collided with the second barge.
A fire erupted on the barge carrying one million gallons of naphtha. Crews extinguished the flames about four hours later and Kendrick says it wasn’t immediately clear whether the petroleum leaked into the water.
There were no injuries reported.
The Galveston/Bolivar ferry service was not disrupted.
The Canadian Press
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