CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — The Coast Guard is responding to an adrift barge that ran aground near the Packery Channel in Corpus Christi, Thursday.
Coast
Guard Sector Corpus Christi command center watchstanders received a call
at 7:45 a.m. from a driver on Texas State Highway 361 stating they saw
an adrift barge floating in the Packery Channel between the boat ramp
and the jetties. The barge was loaded with rocks and drifting outbound.
Watchstanders
notified Callan Marine, the company contracted to repair the jetty
using the barge, and issued a safety marine information broadcast to
alert nearby mariners and beachgoers to the potential hazard. Responders
from Sector Corpus Christi and an MH-65 Dolphin helicopter crew from
Coast Guard Air Station Corpus Christi launched to assess and monitor
the situation.
Once
on scene, Coast Guard crews found the barge had run aground outside the
channel on the south jetty. Responders did not observe any signs of
pollution.
Crews
of the tugboats Captain Wayne Taylor and Josephine Clair responded but
could not successfully tow the barge due to 6-foot waves and unfavorable
sea conditions.
The Coast Guard captain of the port for Corpus Christi is slated to establish a 500-yard safety zone around the barge.
"We urge all
beachgoers and boaters in the area to keep their distance from the
aground barge," said Chief Petty Officer Glenn Jimenez, command duty
officer, Sector Corpus Christi. "Our top priority is keeping everyone safe and out of harm's way until the barge is salvaged."
Callan Marine is coordinating a salvage plan for the barge.
