A 95-foot tugboat carrying 75,000 gallons of fuel sank about 2.5 miles off the Hawaiian island of Oahu on Thursday. Eleven crewmembers were rescued by nearby ships and sustained no injuries in the maritime accident.
The U.S. Coast Guard command center in Honolulu received a mayday call around 3:15 p.m. The pilot of the towing vessel “Nalani” reported the ship was taking on water and in danger of sinking.
The towing vessel Tiger 7 and a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration patrol boat heard the distress call and came to the aid of the Nalani’s crewmembers. The Nalani sank in about 2,200 feet of water.
The Coast Guard said that some of the fuel may already have been seeping out of the vessel. Aerial and beach surveys were being conducted this morning looking for signs of leaking oil.
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