HOW DO STORMS CAUSE OIL SPILLS?

Strong winds and flood waters can damage coastal oil facilities, like storage tanks or refineries, and make boats leak fuel.1 High tides, rain, and winds raise water levels and cause storm surge, which can damage

levees, bridges, roads, homes, businesses, industrial facilities, and pipelines.2,3 Coastal

storms are a major concern during ongoing oil spills. When a storm’s path crosses an existing spill, storm surge can carry oil or oil-covered debris onto the coastline or beyond. However, storms can also help disperse existing oil spills when high winds and rough seas mix the water’s surface, breaking up the oil slick before it comes ashore.4

WHAT ARE THE POTENTIAL IMPACTS OF STORM-DAMAGED OIL RIGS AND VESSELS?

In most cases, damaged vessels have oil on board and need to be removed from the water.5 In addition to potentially leaking oil, sunken oil drilling platforms also pose safety risks for boats out on the water. During Hurricane Rita, several oil platforms sank in the Gulf. Months later a barge struck a sunken platform and caused nearly two million gallons of oil to spill into the surrounding waters.1

WHAT CAN BE IN A STORM’S FLOOD WATERS?

Potential sources of pollutants following flooding from a storm include raw sewage, bacteria, oil, heavy metals, pesticides, toxic chemicals, gasoline, decaying vegetation, and other materials.3,6 Eating, drinking, or touching contaminated water can cause illness and infection. Lingering floodwaters after a hurricane increase health risks to residents and rescuers. While pollution in flood waters eventually dilutes, taking extra precautions, such as practicing good hygiene and avoiding standing water, can prevent problems.7

STORMS AND SPILLSCoastal storms can trigger oil and chemical spills. Learn what to do if a storm causes a spill near you.

(NOAA)

WHO SHOULD I CONTACT TO REPORT A SPILL?

Residents should read resources from FEMA, NOAA, and USCG to find out how to best prepare for a storm and help minimize the chances of a spill. However, if a chemical release or oil spill does occur, contact the National Response Center 24 hours a day at 1-800-424-8802. Be prepared to include the following:

• your name, location, organization, and telephone number;• date, time, and location of incident;• source and cause of the release or spill; and • types and quantities of materials spilled.

Not sure when to report an oil or chemical spill? Check out the spill reporting requirements on EPA’s website at https://www.epa.gov/emergency-response/when-are-you-required-report-oil-spill-and-hazardous-substance-release.

(NOAA)

g u l f s e a g r a n t . o r g / o i l s p i l l o u t r e a c hThis work was made possible in part by a grant from the Gulf of Mexico Research Initiative, and in part by the Sea Grant programs of Texas, Louisiana, Florida, and Mississippi-Alabama. The statements, findings, conclusions, and recommendations do not necessarily reflect the views of these organizations.GOMSG-G-18-006 June 2018

Texas • Louisiana • Florida Mississippi-Alabama

1. National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). (2015). Like a summer blockbuster, oil spills and hurricanes can take a nation by storm. Retrieved from https://response.restoration.noaa.gov/about/media/summer-blockbuster-oil-spills-and-hurricanes-can-take-nation-storm.html. 2. Pine, J. C. (2006). Hurricane Katrina and oil spills: Impact on coastal and ocean environments. Oceanography, 19(2), 37-39. 3. Sheikh, P. A. (2005). The impact of Hurricane Katrina on biological resources. Congressional Research Service report for Congress. 4. NOAA. (2010). Hurricanes and the oil spill. Retrieved from https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/pdf/hurricanes_oil_factsheet.pdf. 5. NOAA. (2015). When boats don’t float: From sunken wrecks to abandoned ships. Retrieved from https://response.restoration.noaa.gov/about/media/when-boats-dont-float-sunken-wrecks-abandoned-ships.html. 6. Pardue. J. H., Moe, W. M., McInnis, D., Thibodeaux, L. J., Valsaraj, K. T., Maciasz, E., . . . Yuan, Q. Z. (2005). Chemical and microbiological parameters in New Orleans floodwater following Hurricane Katrina. Environmental Science & Technology, 39(22), 8591-8599. 7. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2017). Flood waters or standing waters. Retrieved from https://www.cdc.gov/healthywater/emergency/extreme-weather/floods-standingwater.html. 8. Bills, C. E. & Whiting, D. C. (1991). Major oil spills caused by Hurricane Hugo, St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands. International Oil Spill Conference Proceedings, 1991(1), 247-251. 9. Godoy, L. A. (2007). Performance of storage tanks in oil facilities damaged by Hurricane Katrina and Rita. Journal of Performance of Constructed Facilities. 21(6), 441-449. 10. Environmental Protection Agency. (2006). Murphy oil spill fact sheet. Retrieved from http://www.columbia.edu/itc/journalism/cases/katrina/Federal%20Government/Environmental%20Protection%20Agency/Murphy%20Oil%20Spill%20Fact%20Sheet%20Feb%202006.pdf. 11. NOAA. Recent emergency spill responses. Retrieved from https://response.restoration.noaa.gov/oil-and-chemical-spills/significant-incidents/recent-spill-incidents.html. 12. NOAA. Post Hurricane Sandy, NOAA aids hazardous spill cleanup in New Jersey and New York. Retrieved from https://response.restoration.noaa.gov/about/media/post-hurricane-sandy-noaa-aids-hazardous-spill-cleanup-new-jersey-and-new-york.html. 13. NOAA. (2018). Vessel removal in Puerto Rico, U.S. Virgin Islands nears a close. Retrieved from https://blog.response.restoration.noaa.gov/vessel-removal-puerto-rico-us-virgin-islands-nears-close.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTSpecial thanks to the many external reviewers who contributed to the betterment of this oil spill science outreach publication.

SUGGESTED CITATIONWilson, M., Graham, L., Hale, C., Maung-Douglass, E., Sempier, S., Skelton, T., and Swann, L. (2018). Storms and spills. GOMSG-G-18-006.

REFERENCES

SPILLS FROM PAST STORMS

1989

HURRICANE HUGO

Caused two major oil spills

on the island of St. Croix,

U.S. Virgin Islands, by

damaging a discharge

line near the bottom of a

storage tank and causing

it to release one million

gallons of oil.8

(NOAA)

2005

HURRICANESKATRINA AND RITA

Passed through the center of

the Gulf of Mexico’s oil industry

within a month’s time of one

another, causing dozens of

major oil spills and thousands of

smaller spills1 due to direct wind

action and flooding.9 During

Hurricane Katrina, dikes

surrounding oil tanks at the

Murphy Oil refinery in St.

Bernard Parish, Louisiana, filled

due to storm surge and failed,

releasing approximately 1.05

million gallons of oil into nearby

neighborhoods.1,2,10 Storm surge

from Hurricane Rita swept oil

storage tanks into nearby yards.

(EPA)

2012

HURRICANE ISAACAND TROPICAL

CYCLONE SANDY

(NOAA)

Impacted two coastal regions.

During Isaac, Gulf residents

reported 158 oil spills and 171

objects possibly containing

hazardous materials to the

U.S. Coast Guard. These

objects ranged in size from

several gallons to 60,000

gallons.11 Sandy caused oil,

hazardous materials, and

oil-covered debris to spread

across waterways and ports

along the Mid-Atlantic.11,12

2017

HURRICANE MARIA

Crashed through the U.S. Virgin

Islands and Puerto Rico. It

brought strong winds and

heavy rains to the islands

causing catastrophic damage

and flash flooding. Though

Maria did not produce any

large-scale pollution events,

thousands of damaged vessels

were left behind, causing small

pollution incidents. Responders

removed about 12,500 gallons

of fuel and oil waste in the

U.S. Virgin Islands and 16,000

gallons of oily water in

Puerto Rico.13

(USCG)

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