Macy's; New Rochelle, New York

New Rochelle, New York | 1993-Dec-06

Initial Notification: The USCG received a report of oil emanating from an unknown source at an outfall in Echo Bay, New Rochelle, New York at 1500 on December 6, 1993. Macy's Department Store, located in a mall less than one mile from the outfall, was identified as the source and responsible party by USCG investigators. Approximately 7,000 gallons of #4 oil had flooded the basement of the store and entered a storm sewer that flowed into Echo Bay. Macy's was reluctant to assume responsible party status for the incident, but eventually consented to do so. The USCG hired a cleanup contractor who boomed the outlet and downstream area. Oil was contained close to the source, but some oil entered a nearby marina. Weather at the time of the incident was moderate ,with an air temperature of 40?F, water temperature of 49?F, winds out of the northwest at 15 to 20 knots, and calm seas. USCG district 1. Keyword: containment boom, ground truth, high-pressure washing, reoiling, shallow-water recovery, sorbent boom, sorbent pompoms, vacuum trucks, volunteers, weir/pump skimmer.