Authorities Looking for Source of Oil Spill at Florida’s Port Manatee

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The U.S. Coast Guard is continuing to investigate the source of an oil spill that contaminated more than 19,000 gallons of water at Port Manatee in Tampa Bay.

The spill was reported last week and crews have worked since then to contain the crude oil and clean it from the harbor and from boats, local news outlets reported. The Coast Guard said that the source and the responsible party had not been identified Tuesday, The Tampa Bay Times and the Bradenton Herald reported.

Cleanup crews had so far collected about 15 tons of contaminated debris and absorbent material, and the efforts had kept the oil from spreading into the bay, a Coast Guard spokesperson said.

The federal Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund was being used to help fund the cleanup efforts. The fund, established in 1990, kicks in when the responsible party cannot be found.

The spill comes two years after a wastewater pond near the port leaked some 215 million gallons of contaminated water from an abandoned phosphate plant. The incident caused the evacuation of 300 homes in the area.

Photo: A ship at Port Manatee in 2021, after a wastewater pond leaked phosphate and radioactive waste into Tampa Bay. (Douglas R. Clifford/Tampa Bay Times via AP)