Barge Still On Fire In Delaware Bay
Below is everything we know about the fire. as of 8pm on May 23rd it is still on fire. At times it looks like it is out but then a pocket lights back up.
Press release
Barge Still On Fire In Delaware Bay
Local emergency responders have been working into the afternoon today to contain a fire aboard a cargo barge approximately 9 miles off the coast of Port Mahon. Crews from the U.S. Coast Guard and the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control are onsite assessing the situation after the fire was reported just after 1 a.m. today.
The DNREC Emergency Response Team joined federal and local partners monitoring the Delaware Bay by air and patrol boat for environmental impacts caused by the fire, which discharged a plume of smoke. While smoke is currently visible from the beach, air quality monitoring stations in the region are currently showing low readings of Particulate Matter (PM2.5). Data is available to the public at Airnow.gov or purpleair.com.
The USCG and DNREC crews are also looking for debris from the barge and its cargo of disused household appliances and scrap metal, and wildlife that might be struggling from the effects of the fire. As of Monday afternoon, they had observed no debris in the water from the vessel and there have been no reports of impacted wildlife.