Oil spill cleanup continues in Woodland

ALMOST a week since an oil spill in the Godineau River in Woodland, Heritage Petroleum Company Ltd is still cleaning it up.

On Wednesday, the company sent workers to Woodland after receiving reports of a spill at New Cut Channel.

In a release, it said then, “Company officials were immediately dispatched to the site and quickly determined that the spill was emanating from its 16-inch trunk pipeline.

It said the pipeline was isolated and clamped and the company was "mobilising all available resources including the services of specialised oil spill response contractors to clean up the affected areas.”

In addition, it said a wildlife rescue, conservation and rehabilitation team was sent out, and booms were being deployed along the Godineau River to stop the oil spreading. further spread downstream."

When Newsday visited the area on Monday, there were several workers there, including senior officials from Heritage.

Nearby residents said the 30 or so men began working at approximately 6 am, and when Newsday arrived at approximately 1 pm, they were being rounded up and dismissed for the day.

One senior official said, "The weather is against us," while speaking to the workers.

Asked for a comment, the workers said they were not allowed to speak to the media.

Newsday also went out on the river by boat. Many mangroves had remnants of oil from the spill, which also coated some oysters and fiddler crabs.

There were several oil booms along the river and excavators were seen tearing down parts of the riverbank.