NEW ORLEANS July 23, 2008 (AP)
The Coast Guard says 29 miles of the Mississippi River at New Orleans are closed after a tugboat pushing a barge and a 600-foot tanker crashed, causing diesel to leak into the water.
Coast Guard Petty Officer Jaclyn Young says the barge split in half.
The double-hulled tanker was loaded with about 4 million gallons of biodiesel and more tha a million gallons of styrene.
But the president of company that manages the tanker says nothing is leaking. Styrene is a liquid used to make plastics and rubber.
Young says the barge was carrying fuel oil and more than 419,000 gallons spilled into the river.
No injuries were reported Wednesday morning in the crash between the Liberian-flagged tanker Tintomara and the tug Mel Oliver.
Source: http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/wireStory?id=5432753
