Rollins Terminal; Bayonne, New Jersey

Bayonne, New Jersey | 1987-Jan-19

Initial Notification: The failure of a 600,000 gallon tank at the Rollins terminal in Bayonne, New Jersey, resulted in a spill of approximately 450,000 gallons of caustic soda into the Kill Van Kull, which separates Bayonne from Staten Island, New York. The leak was reported by Rollins to the U.S. Coast Guard Captain of the Port (COTP), New York on January 19, 1987. The local fire department was the first responder and aided the facility in diking the released caustic, thereby preventing additional caustic from reaching the Kill. The Coast Guard COTP and New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) advised the facility on appropriate methods to reduce effects to the environment and ensure compliance with environmental laws. A brown, milky plume was observed along the shore of the Kill and out approximately 100 feet before it dissipated. Testing of pH with litmus paper revealed the pollutant to be of a pH greater than 14 along the shore, where it entered the water. USCG district 3.