PORT ARTHUR, Texas (AP) _ Authorities credit a massive emergency response with averting an environmental disaster as crews contained the worst Texas oil spill in more than 15 years.
About 462,000 gallons of oil spilled when an 800-foot tanker headed for an Exxon Mobil refinery in Beaumont collided Saturday with a vessel pushing two barges. The U.S. Coast Guard says that as of Monday, about 220,000 gallons of oil had evaporated, dispersed or been recovered.
No injuries have been reported. Some nearby Port Arthur residents were forced from their homes after the spill while officials tested the air quality. So far, only two oil-covered
birds have been reported. One was captured and cleaned up, and the other flew away.
It was the largest spill in Texas since 1990, when a Norwegian tanker spilled 4.3 million gallons about 60 miles off Galveston. State officials say Texas typically has about 800 spills a year, but nearly all involve less than one barrel.