Barge spills heavy load Vessel used for bridge painting tips drums, machinery and fuel into the Columbia

Saturday, October 7, 2000

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

PORTLAND -- A barge spilled several pieces of heavy machinery and drums of leaded paint and diesel fuel into the Columbia River yesterday.

The barge was being used as a platform for workers painting the Interstate 5 bridge south of Jantzen Beach, said Jeff Pile, spokesman for the U.S. Coast Guard.

The cause of the accident is under investigation, but Pile said the pillars stabilizing the barge could be at fault.

Fifty 55-gallon buckets filled with leaded paint chips and sand grit sank to the bottom of the river, as did a sandblaster and 50-kilowatt generator.

A 5,000-gallon tank of diesel fuel also fell overboard, but was recovered before any fuel leaked out, said Dan Redding, a spokesman with the Portland Fire Bureau.

About 250 gallons of diesel fuel leaked into the river from the two pieces of heavy machinery, Pile said.

"The biggest issue is the lead-based paint chips," he said. "The problem right now is we're losing daylight."

A crane barge and a team of divers was headed to the accident site last night to try to retrieve the drums of leaded paint, Pile said.

Certified Coating, the California-based company that had contracted with the Oregon Department of Transportation to paint the bridge, will be held responsible for the accident, said Robin Klarmann, a marine science technician from the Coast Guard's pollution response branch.

Certified Coating will likely be fined, but it's unclear how much, she said.

Fines for industrial pollution can be as high as $25,000, she said.

Certified Coating had subcontracted with a company called Brix for the barge, but Brix won't be held responsible, Klarmann said.

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-- Doris (reaper@pacifier.com), October 09, 2000