Spills

Assateague island mystery spill; assateague island national wildlife refuge,virginia

NOAAORR-7207

issued
1997-05-30 00:00Z
status
cancelled 1997-06-13 00:00Z
self-cancels
1997-06-13 00:00Z
authority
NOAA OR&R
sea
North Atlantic Ocean
position
37.867, -75.417
source
incidentnews · first seen 2026-09-03 15:09Z

Original warning text

Assateague Island Mystery Spill; Assateague Island National Wildlife Refuge,Virginia.
Assateague Island National Wildlife Refuge,Virginia.
1. About 1000 on May 30, 1997, Rangers from Chincoteague National Park reported that tarballs were washing ashore on the southern end of Assateague Island. The initial beach assessment was that the tarballs covered one to two percent of the beach at the high-water mark and stretched more than four nautical miles at the south end of Assateague Island. An afternoon overflight noted a light patchy sheen with scattered tarballs extending northeast more than eight nautical miles from the southern tip of Assateague Island. USCG district 5.
2. COMMODITY: TARBALLS.
3. POSITION 37.867N 075.417W. NOAA INCIDENTNEWS 7207: https://incidentnews.noaa.gov/incident/7207

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