VIDEO: Barge strikes Pelican Island bridge

USCG photo

Response efforts have been ongoing since a 321-foot barge carrying bunker fuel yesterday slammed into the bridge connecting Galveston with Pelican Island, the site of the Texas A&M Maritime Academy. The barge, the MMLP 321 operated by Martin Petroleum, was reportedly carrying 30,000 barrels of vacuum gas oil.

Coast Guard Sector Houston-Galveston said that watchstanders received a report at 9.48 a.m. yesterday that the barge had struck the Pelican Island Causeway Bridge and coordinated the launch of a Coast Guard Station Galveston boat crew to respond.

Containment boom was deployed in the vicinity of the strike and the intercoastal waterway closed from Pelican Cut (mile marker 351.5) to the Galveston Causeway (mile marker 357.3) with a 5.8-mile safety zone being issued for the surrounding waters.

The bridge was closed in both directions

The Houston Chronicle reports David Flores, a bridge superintendent with the Galveston County Navigation District as saying that incident occurred when a tugboat backing out of Texas International Terminals, a fuel storage operator located next to the bridge, lost control of two barges it was pushing.

“The current was very bad, and the tide was high. He lost it,” Flores is quoted as saying. said. He said one of the barges hit the bridge and two telephone poles.

This morning KHOU 11, which has been posting a live stream from the scene, reported that travel on the Pelican Island Causeway Bridge remained limited with Galveston Police letting one car at a time use the bridge to evacuate the island. KHOU 11 also reported the Coast Guard as saying that the oil leak from the barge had finally been stopped.

In its coverage of the incident, FOX 26 quoted a statement from Richard Freed, the VP for the marine division at Martin Midstream Partners L.P., as saying the barge is owned and operated by its Martin Operating Partnership L.P subsidiary.

The full statement reads:

“At approximately 10:00 a.m. on May 15, 2024, a barge owned and operated by Martin Operating Partnership L.P., a wholly owned subsidiary of Martin Midstream Partners L.P., broke loose from its tow and drifted into the Pelican Island Causeway Bridge. At the time of the incident, the vessel transporting the barge was under the control of a captain with more than 20 years of maritime experience. There were no personal injuries as a result of the incident. While initially a limited amount of product emanated from the barge into the water, at this time there is no product leaking from the barge. We have personnel on site assessing the damage. The company has already engaged a salvage company to assist with the removal of the barge from the bridge area. The company promptly notified all required governmental authorities.”