Bouchard Barge 120; Buzzards Bay, MA

Buzzards Bay, MA | 2003-Apr-27

Initial Notification: At approximately 5:30 pm on Sunday April 27, 2003, the US Coast Guard's Marine Safety Office in Providence, Rhode Island received a report of a discharge from the barge "B No. 120" owned by the Bouchard Transportation Company of Hicksville, NY. The barge grounded, outside of the shipping lanes, at the entrance to Buzzard Bay in southern Massachusetts. Following the grounding, the tug and barge continued to anchorage LIMA, where it officially reported the discharge to the USCG. The barge B-120 had a capacity of 97,000 barrels (4,074,000 gallons) and discharged approximately 2,333 barrels (98,000 gallons) of heavy number 6 fuel. Overall, more than 90 miles of coast line were impacted (40 miles of direct impact and 50 miles of tar ball impacts), 415 birds were killed, and the habitats for three endangered species (roseate tern, piping plover and NE tiger beetle) were oiled. Clean up costs exceeded $23 million.