Advertising

The Seattle Times Company

NWjobs | NWautos | NWhomes | NWsource | Free Classifieds | seattletimes.com

The Seattle Times

Local News


Our network sites seattletimes.com | Advanced

Originally published January 12, 2007 at 12:00 AM | Page modified January 12, 2007 at 5:46 PM

E-mail article     Print view

Anchors fall off 2 oil tankers from Alaska in Pacific storm

Anchors fell off two oil tankers during heavy weather as they were carrying crude oil from Alaska to Long Beach, Calif., and the Coast Guard and state of Washington are investigating.

The Associated Press

Anchors fell off two oil tankers during heavy weather as they were carrying crude oil from Alaska to Long Beach, Calif., and the Coast Guard and state of Washington are investigating.

The anchors were discovered missing in late December when the 941-foot tankers were being unloaded at Long Beach, said Anil Mathur, chief executive of the Alaska Tanker Co. of Beaverton, Ore.

The ships were allowed to continue to Washington where they finished unloading at a BP refinery at Cherry Point. Now the Alaskan Frontier is at Port Angeles and the Alaskan Navigator in Seattle while they await new anchors.

Each ship has two anchors and the remaining anchor on each ship is cracked. So the company is flying four anchors _ 15 tons each _ on Sunday from Holland to be installed next week, Mathur said.

Each anchor is more than 13 feet tall and hangs at the bow of the tanker.

It's unknown exactly when and where the anchors fell away because it happened in transit late last month during storms.

Mathur told the Anchorage Daily News that the crews found the anchors missing after each ship had plowed through heavy seas.

"Whenever we have heavy weather, we don't allow anyone on deck," he said. ``So once the weather passed and people went to do their rounds, they found the anchors were missing."

The company, shipbuilder National Steel and Shipbuilding Co. of San Diego, the Coast Guard and the Washington Department of Ecology are investigating what went wrong.

"Preliminarily it looks like a defect in the manufacturing process of the anchors," Mathur said. ``It is unusual but it has happened before.''

All the parties involved said in a joint statement there was no harm to the environment.

"We immediately advised the Coast Guard and other agencies as required and have worked cooperatively since this discovery," Mathur said in a statement.

advertising

"We commend the company for taking these actions that are paramount for safe vessel operations in state waters," said Dale Jensen, who oversees oil spill prevention, preparedness and response activities for the Washington Ecology Department.

The company said it will inspect the anchors on two other similar tankers, the Alaskan Legend and the Alaskan Explorer.

The four double-hulled tankers were built for $250 million each, and were delivered to Alaska Tanker from 2005 to 2006. Each carries 1.3 million barrels of crude.

Alaska Tanker expects no supply interruptions.

Copyright © 2007 The Seattle Times Company

Food-safety lawyer's wish: Put me out of business

Illegal workers quietly let go

Metro won't cut bus service after all

Jerry Large: Food-bank theft turns into a gift

Bumper to Bumper: How can the city let bridges go dark?

Advertising

Video

PNW Magazine | Easy As Pie
A little friendly competition between professional pie-baker Kate McDermott and The Seatttle Times' Kathleen Triesch Saul is handled with great taste.

Real Salt Lake wins MLS Cup
Raw Video | Real Salt Lake fans celebrate
Raw Video | Real Salt Lake receives the MLS Cup trophy
Real Salt Lake fans enter Qwest Field
Raw Video | MLS Cup Opening Ceremony
LA Galaxy's David Beckham
Real Salt Lake's Kyle Beckerman
MLS trophy arrives in Seattle
Chittenden Locks Inspection

Marketplace

Open Houses

Find this weekend's open house listings.
Or search by location:

nwautos

Less is more: Group rides, good gas mileage have led to a scooter swarm in Seattlenew
Local riders say they've seen a surge in scooter interest in recent years, mostly from people wanting another commuting option. Seattle now ranks as o...
Post a comment

 
Most read
Most commented
Most e-mailed
 
 
Advertising