August 31, 2015
NEW ORLEANS – The Coast Guard is responding to a sunken barge near Convent on the Mississippi River, Monday.
Coast Guard Sector New Orleans watchstanders were notified of a crane barge that broke free of its mooring and sank near mile marker 160 at 5:20 a.m.
The barge reportedly contains a maximum potential of 8,000 gallons of diesel fuel along with an excavator crane and backhoe. The Coast Guard is working with the barge owner as well as ES&H, an oil spill response organization, to determine the amount of fuel in the tank at the time of the incident. The Coast Guard is also working with McKinney Towing & Salvage to develop a plan for salvage operations.
There were no injuries reported.
The cause of the incident is being investigated.