SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico – The Coast Guard announced Resolve Marine crews are preparing the sailing vessel Obsession for transport, Wednesday, after completing the vessel’s successful removal from a reef off Flamenco Beach in Culebra, Tuesday.
Resolve Marine crews used their 400-ton shear-leg barge, 164-foot in length and 54-foot wide, to complete the removal of the 72-foot sailing catamaran. Resolve Marine crews will conduct a second lift, Wednesday, to load the vessel Obsession to a second barge for transport to the receiving facility at Virgin Gorda, British Virgin Islands.
“We are very pleased with the successful removal of the sailing vessel Obsession, which no longer represents a threat to the reef and sensitive area off Flamenco Beach,” said Chief Warrant Officer Jamie Testa, Federal On-Scene Coordinator Representative for the case. “We still have ongoing sensitive work to do to ensure the vessel is patched up and ready for transport to its destination in Virgin Gorda. We commend the efforts of the Resolve Marine crews, Mobro Marine and American Tug and Barge, Clean Harbors LLC, Sea Tow and all other supporting entities and partner agencies who have been working for the past 51 days to resolve this matter with the least impact to the reef and the sensitive marine environment.”
During removal operation, a Station San Juan 33-foot Special Purpose Craft–Law Enforcement boat crew enforced a 100-yard safety zone perimeter around the sailing vessel Obsession to ensure the safety of the worksite.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration contracted Sea Ventures to conduct further underwater assessments following the vessel’s removal to evaluate the full extent of the impacts to the reef and the underwater environment.
Resolve Marine and Clean Harbors, LLC crews completed the bulk removal of approximately 1,500 gallons of diesel from the four fuel tanks and a day tank onboard the sailing vessel, July 31, 2024. Despite completing the fuel removal, responders estimated a substantial pollution threat remained aboard the vessel Obsession. The amount of remaining oil products and hazardous materials were difficult to quantify due to the machinery, tanks (including a hydraulic tank) and access hatches being completely submerged or inaccessible.
Throughout removal operations, the Incident Command’s Environmental Unit provided the best available guidance and measures to protect the sensitive environment and susceptible endangered species and critical habitat. Throughout the response, personnel from the Puerto Rico Department of Natural and Environmental Resources and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) conducted preliminary underwater assessments to determine the impacts on the reef caused by the vessel grounding. They also recovered and safeguarded various species of live corals that will be used to rehabilitate the impacted area.
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