Exxon Valdez Oil Spill by Itzia Angel (Event)

The Exxon Valdez oil spill occurred in the Prince William Sound Alaska. On Monday March 24, 1989 it considered one of the most devastating human caused environmental disasters even to occur at sea as significant as the Exxon Valdez spill was it ranks will sown on the list worlds largest. Oil Spills in terms or volume released however Prince William sound remote. Location at 9:12 pm on March 24 bound for Long Beach, California. A harbor pilot guided the ship though the Valdez narrows before leaving the ship and returning control to Joseph Jeffery Harzelwood. The ship's master the ship maneuvered out of the shipping. Lane to avoid icebergs. Following the maneuver and sometimes after 11 pm, Hazelwood departed. The wheel house he left third mate Gregory cosigns in charge of the wheel house and Ablen Seaman. Tobert Kaga at the helm, both of whom not giving their mandatory 6 hours off duty before their 12 hour duty began. The ship was on autopilot so that the navigation system innately by the company which icebergs so the ships Hazewood, got permission from the coast guard to go out though the inbound lane. The ship struck blight reef at around 12:04 am March 24, 1989 beginning three days after the vessel. Ground a storm pushed rage quantities of fresh oil onto the rocky shores of many of the beaches in the knight island chain.

The ship was carrying 53.1 million U.S. gallons of oil, of which 10.8 millions U.S. gallons where spilled into the Prince William Sound. The first clean up response was through the use of a dispersant and sufactant and solvent mixture a private company applied on March 24 with a helicopter and dispersant buckerts. because their was not enough wave action to mix the dispersant with the oil in the water. The spill isolated in a reigion of the spill isolated from the rest by another explostion the test was relative successful. Readucing 113,400 liters of remo vable residue but because of unfavorable water no additional burning was attemted in this clean up. Thousands of animals affected died immediately, the best estimate includes 250,000 to as many as 500,000 seabirds at least 1,000 sea atters and approximately 12 river otters and 300 hardbour seals, and 22 orcas as well as the destruction of billions salmon and herring birds.