Coast Guard Overseeing Clean-Up Of Brooklyn Oil Spill
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) - The U.S. Coast Guard has been tapped to oversee the clean-up of an oil spill in Brooklyn's Paerdegat Basin.
National Grid was replacing a gas main through the waterway near Jamaica Bay on Thursday when something went wrong, causing the caustic petroleum-cement mixture to spill out.
WCBS 880's Alex Silverman reports
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A sheen can be seen atop the water and the smell of natural gas made some people feel sick, WCBS 880's Alex Silverman reported.
A man who is a member of a yacht club on the Basin said the smell has subsided over the past few days.
"The odor was from the material that they put in the methane gas to make it smell," Tony told Silverman.
Tony said the odor gave him a headache last week.
"And in fact we left the area, we couldn't stay here any longer, it was that bad," he told Silverman. "It filled up our clubhouse, when I pulled in it filled up my car. It was pretty bad."
The city has advised the public to avoid fishing and recreational activity in the area until the oil spill can be completely cleaned up.
Tony said so far, crews have been working hard to clean up the mess.
"Well they've been putting absorbent pads down, they've put oil booms across the creek and bagging the objects and taking them out of here," he told Silverman.
The city's Office of Emergency Management said National Grid contractors are working under the direction of the Coast Guard to clean up the spill.
