Fuel to be recovered from sunken vessel

Cleanup is planned at the site of the sunken supply vessel Monarch adjacent to the Granite Point platform in Cook Inlet.

The Monarch was pinned against the platform by sea ice while making a delivery Jan. 15 and sank; the seven-member crew evacuated to the platform.

The Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation’s Division of Spill Prevention and Response said June 10 that Ocean Marine Services Inc. reported the 166-foot vessel carried an estimated 34,000 gallons of diesel fuel, 690 gallons of lube oil, plus several totes and drums of chemicals for delivery to platforms.

The division said the volume of oil spilled is unknown at this time.

Perseverance was to be on station June 11 to begin fuel recovery operations from internal tanks on the Monarch, the division said. Three dive periods are expected in a 24-hour period to recover fuel and lube oils from the cargo tanks on the Monarch, with diving operations expected to be conducted during periods of slack current lasting approximately 30 minutes each. Divers will access each of the 12 tanks on board the Monarch from existing deck fittings and fuel will be pumped to portable tanks on board the Perseverance for later disposal.

The division said one 330-gallon portable tank listed as deck cargo on the Monarch was recovered from Afognak Island; a second 330-gallon portable tank and a 110-gallon portable tank were recovered from the inlet floor.

Global Diving and Salvage, in cooperation with naval architects, determined that the tidal forces on the Monarch in its present position and orientation are not substantial enough to move the vessel from its current location.

The division said a non-recoverable sheen was last sighted Jan. 17; no additional oil sheening has been seen since that time.

—Petroleum News