It isn’t always a boat

By Bill Symes

and Elaina Thompson

When Islands’ Oil Spill Association kicks into gear, the cause usually involves a boat: fuel emitted from a sunken vessel, spilled diesel at a fuel dock, lube oil dumped in the water,… IOSA exists to protect the San Juan Islands from marine oil pollution. It gets requests from government agencies like the US Coast Guard and the Washington State Department of Ecology to send staff and/or volunteers to the site of a reported spill, assess the need for remedial action, and, when directed, performs the initial response actions.

However, the culprit is not always a boat. In the past 12 months, IOSA gave first assessments of oil spill risk for two automobiles that had somehow wound up in the water. The most recent occurred at False Bay on San Juan Island. The incident log tells the story best:

January 7, 2025:

8:30-9:30 a.m.: IOSA received multiple emails, phone calls and text messages from the community concerning a car that had gone into the water off the road in False Bay.

9:19 a.m.: IOSA received the email report of State Incident #25-0077 and spoke to San Juan County Department of Emergency Management Director, Brendan Cowan, about the incident on the phone shortly after receiving the email.

9:30 a.m.: IOSA Operations Manager, Rick Winings, is dispatched to assess the incident. Winings stops by IOSA HQ to pick up sorbents, trash bags, a grabber stick and other supplies that may be needed.

9:50 a.m.: IOSA received a call from Chris at DOE about the incident. It was agreed there is a likelihood of gasoline leakage from this vehicle and the response/sorbent pickup choices need to be managed wisely . (it’s typically unsafe to use sorbents to soak up gasoline due to its high flammability and toxic vapor release). IOSA Executive Director, Elaina Thompson, let Chris know that IOSA will be on scene shortly and will provide updates. Chris shared the Sheriff’s plan to tow the vehicle out of the water around noon today.

10:11 a.m.: Winings is on scene for IOSA – no one else currently present. No sheen present and there is no need for sorbents at this time. Winings stays on scene for an hour to see if anything changes and he manages to pick up a few debris items that came from the car as the tide recedes. He also phoned the Sheriff’s Office about the time they intend to tow the vehicle out and whether they would like IOSA on scene to help if needed. Approx location is: 48.4893264 N, 123.0635064 W.

11:18 a.m.: Winings left the scene and plans to return to be on standby with sorbents during tow.

12:18 p.m.: Winings is on scene for IOSA and ready to assist with sorbents if there is a sudden release of oil during the procedure.

1:24 p.m.: No pollution event occurred during haul out. The vehicle was successfully removed from the water and is being towed away. Winings has left the scene.

Epilogue:

During this incident, there was little threat of serious oil pollution, but and a larger threat of gasoline leakage. In the end, neither threat materialized, but IOSA was there to make sure that all responders knew what they were facing, First-on-scene threat assessment, a key role that IOSA plays in protecting the environment of San Juan County while preserving State and Federal resources. IOSA has responded to 30 oil spill incidents in the last two years, several of them involving serious pollution risk. When the call comes, IOSA is ready to serve it’s community.

Islands’ Oil Spill Association is a one-of-a-kind spill response organization in the San Juan Islands, and one of very few non-profit, community-based, spill response organizations in the Nation. For more information, visit http://iosaonline.org or follow us online @iosaonline. If you see oil in the water, report it to WA State at 800-OILS-911 and the USCG National Response Center at 800-424-8802. Both of these reporting agencies call on IOSA to respond within San Juan County.