Exxon Valdez was the original name of an oil tanker owned by the former Exxon Corporation. It gained widespread infamy after the March 24, 1989 oil spill in which the tanker hit Prince William Sound's Bligh Reef and spilled an estimated 11 to 30 million U.S. gallons (50,000 m³ to 150,000 m³) of crude oil: the Exxon Valdez oil spill, or the EVOS. As a result of the spill thousands of animals perished in the following months. The best estimates are: 250,000 sea birds, 2,800 sea otters, 300 harbor seals, 250 bald eagles, up to 22 orcas, and billions of salmon and herring eggs. In addition, the oil killed off a majority of the plankton supply in the sound. Many centers were set up to clean animals but they were too late in many cases. The captain of the Exxon Valdez, Joseph Hazelwood, was then found guilty of negligence — he admitted he had been drinking vodka before boarding the vessel — and in 1991 a federal judge approved a $1.1 billion settlement reached by Exxon, the federal government, and Alaska.
The vessel had an all steel construction, built by National Steel and Shipbuilding Company in San Diego. A relatively new tanker at the time of the spill, it was delivered to Exxon in December 1986. The tanker was 300 m long, 50 m wide, and 27 m in depth (987 ft by 166 ft by 88 ft), weighing 30,000 tons empty and powered by a 31,650 shp (23.60 MW) diesel engine. The ship could transport a maximum of 1.48 million barrels (200,000 t) at a sustained speed of 16.25 knots (30 km/h) and was employed to transport crude oil from the Alyeska consortium's pipeline terminal in Valdez, Alaska, to the lower 48 states of the United States. The vessel was carrying about 1.26 million barrels, or about 53 million gallons, when it struck the reef. The accident would have been contained, but the captain only reported it as a minor accident.
After the spill, the Exxon Valdez was towed to San Diego, arriving on July 10 and repairs began in July 30, 1989. Approximately 1,600 tons of steel were removed and replaced. In June 1989 the tanker left harbor after $30 million of repairs.
Exxon operated the tanker in Europe to avoid further publicity, renaming it the Exxon Mediterranean, and later the Sea River Mediterranean (under the Exxon subsidiary SeaRiver Maritime). The Sea River Mediterranean remains in service, with its name further shortened to S/R Mediterranean, then to simply Mediterranean under the Marshall Island flag but is prohibited by law from entering Prince William Sound. The vessel may face scrapping in the near future, due to a global ban on single-hulled tankers, despite the ship being only about halfway through its operational life expectancy. (all info from Wikimedia Inc.)
The vessel had an all steel construction, built by National Steel and Shipbuilding Company in San Diego. A relatively new tanker at the time of the spill, it was delivered to Exxon in December 1986. The tanker was 300 m long, 50 m wide, and 27 m in depth (987 ft by 166 ft by 88 ft), weighing 30,000 tons empty and powered by a 31,650 shp (23.60 MW) diesel engine. The ship could transport a maximum of 1.48 million barrels (200,000 t) at a sustained speed of 16.25 knots (30 km/h) and was employed to transport crude oil from the Alyeska consortium's pipeline terminal in Valdez, Alaska, to the lower 48 states of the United States. The vessel was carrying about 1.26 million barrels, or about 53 million gallons, when it struck the reef. The accident would have been contained, but the captain only reported it as a minor accident.
After the spill, the Exxon Valdez was towed to San Diego, arriving on July 10 and repairs began in July 30, 1989. Approximately 1,600 tons of steel were removed and replaced. In June 1989 the tanker left harbor after $30 million of repairs.
Exxon operated the tanker in Europe to avoid further publicity, renaming it the Exxon Mediterranean, and later the Sea River Mediterranean (under the Exxon subsidiary SeaRiver Maritime). The Sea River Mediterranean remains in service, with its name further shortened to S/R Mediterranean, then to simply Mediterranean under the Marshall Island flag but is prohibited by law from entering Prince William Sound. The vessel may face scrapping in the near future, due to a global ban on single-hulled tankers, despite the ship being only about halfway through its operational life expectancy. (all info from Wikimedia Inc.)
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