Tank Barge Argo; Western Lake Erie, Ohio
NOAA initial notification: “On October 20, 1937, the tank barge Argo foundered in a storm and sank in western Lake Erie. At the time of the sinking, the barge was reportedly loaded with 4,762 barrels of crude oil and benzol. The vessel was identified in the 2013 NOAA RULET (Remediation of Underwater Legacy […]”[1]
Latest included source report
Posted 21 Nov 2015
Latest source report
“http://www.uscgnews.com/go/doc/4007/2695002/# CLEVELAND – Lightering operations began today for the Lake Erie sunken tanker barge Argo as Unified Command responders took advantage of a favorable weather window. The first of Argo’s eight tanks are being tapped and offloaded. The product will be pumped into a specialized container on a work barge where it will be run through a […]” Current outcome is not independently verified by seahazards.[4]
NOAA report chronology
4 dated source records · 16 Sept 2015 to 21 Nov 2015NOAA incident record opened
Initial notification excerpt: “On October 20, 1937, the tank barge Argo foundered in a storm and sank in western Lake Erie. At the time of the sinking, the barge was reportedly loaded with 4,762 barrels of crude oil and benzol. The vessel was identified in the 2013 NOAA RULET (Remediation of Underwater Legacy Environmental Threats) report and database as potential pollution threat, but the exact location of the wreck was unknown. Recently the vessel was located, confirmed to be in U.S. waters of Lake Erie, and appears from side-scan sonar survey imagery to be intact and may be periodically leaking.”
NOAA approximate incident area; not a vessel track
Initial incident area only. Dates are NOAA postings, not a vessel track. Playback advances every 5 seconds.
Milestone 1 of 4: 16 Sept 2015. NOAA incident record opened. NOAA approximate incident area; not a vessel track
NOAA incident record opened
Initial notification excerpt: “On October 20, 1937, the tank barge Argo foundered in a storm and sank in western Lake Erie. At the time of the sinking, the barge was reportedly loaded with 4,762 barrels of crude oil and benzol. The vessel was identified in the 2013 NOAA RULET (Remediation of Underwater Legacy Environmental Threats) report and database as potential pollution threat, but the exact location of the wreck was unknown. Recently the vessel was located, confirmed to be in U.S. waters of Lake Erie, and appears from side-scan sonar survey imagery to be intact and may be periodically leaking.”
NOAA approximate incident area; not a vessel track (41.639°, -82.493°)
Press release 05-Nov-2015
Source report excerpt: “News Release November 05, 2015 Coast Guard Marine Safety Unit Toledo Contact: Lt. Ryan Junod Office: (419) 392-0323 UPDATE 3: Crews continue response for sunken Lake Erie barge CLEVELAND - Crews continue to respond to and investigate a reported discharge of an unknown substance from the site of a sunken barge near Kelleys Island Shoal in Lake Erie Thursday. The unified command, consisting of the U.S. Coast Guard and the Ohio EPA, continues to take all necessary actions to ensure the safety of the public and the environment. During dive operations Wednesday, a pinhole-sized leak was detected in one of the cargo tanks and was successfully secured by the dive team. As a precautionary measure, […]”
USCG Press Release - UPDATE 5 – 15-NOV-2015
Source report excerpt: “See Link: http://www.uscgnews.com/go/doc/4007/2637614/ CLEVELAND – Salvage operations for the sunken tanker barge Argo in Lake Erie continue as the Unified Command proceeds with plans for product recovery. Crews will start prepping the first tank this week for “hot tapping” operations. Actual lightering operations will not occur until later in the week at the earliest, as the response operators are still waiting for the proper tank to offload the material into and weather continues to impede operations. The results from the sample from this first tank, sampled on November 9, were found to be primarily Benzene, with some Toluene, Xylene and trace elements of petroleum. Because these […]”
USCG Press Release - UPDATE 6 – 20-NOV-2015
Source report excerpt: “http://www.uscgnews.com/go/doc/4007/2695002/# CLEVELAND – Lightering operations began today for the Lake Erie sunken tanker barge Argo as Unified Command responders took advantage of a favorable weather window. The first of Argo’s eight tanks are being tapped and offloaded. The product will be pumped into a specialized container on a work barge where it will be run through a series of carbon filters to separate and remove the flammable vapors from the product. The contents will again be sampled to gain a better understanding of the contents of Argo’s hold. This step-by-step, methodical process will ensure operations are conducted in the safest possible manner for both responders and the […]”
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Details in the record
- Source record
- NOAA IncidentNews 9177[1]
Reading this account
Automatically assembled from NOAA's incident record and substantive Public Affairs or Situation Update posts. Dates are NOAA posting dates, which can differ from when events happened or original reports were published. Excerpts retain the source's wording and uncertainty. This account does not independently establish the cause, current outcome or safety of the area. NOAA coverage is selective; missing updates do not mean nothing happened. The map shows one approximate incident area, not a vessel track.
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Original sources
Timeline updated 10 Sept 2026. New reports and changes to this NOAA incident are incorporated automatically; this is not a live incident feed.
- 1.Tank Barge Argo; Western Lake Erie, Ohio ↗NOAA Office of Response and Restoration · 16 Sept 2015
- 2.Press release 05-Nov-2015 ↗NOAA IncidentNews · source report archive · 6 Nov 2015
- 3.USCG Press Release - UPDATE 5 – 15-NOV-2015 ↗NOAA IncidentNews · source report archive · 16 Nov 2015
- 4.USCG Press Release - UPDATE 6 – 20-NOV-2015 ↗NOAA IncidentNews · source report archive · 21 Nov 2015
Related records in our archive
Original source text, preserved separately from this account.
NOAAORR-9177 NOAA response record
Tank Barge Argo; Western Lake Erie, Ohio. Western Lake Erie, Ohio. 1. On October 20, 1937, the tank barge Argo foundered in a storm and sank in western Lake Erie. At the time of the sinking, the barge was reportedly loaded with 4,762 barrels of crude oil and benzol. The vessel was identified in the 2013 NOAA RULET (Remediation of Underwater Legacy Environmental Threats) report and database as potential pollution threat, but the exact location of the wreck was unknown. Recently the vessel was located, confirmed to be in U.S. waters of Lake Erie, and appears from side-scan sonar survey imagery to be intact and may be periodically leaking. 2. THREAT: OIL. COMMODITY: CRUDE OIL, BENZOL. MAXIMUM POTENTIAL RELEASE: 200000 GALLONS. TAGS: DERELICT, HISTORIC WRECK. 3. POSITION 41.639N 082.493W. NOAA INCIDENTNEWS 9177: https://incidentnews.noaa.gov/incident/9177Open record and warning history →
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