U.S. FISH AND WILDLIFE SERVICE VIA U.S. COAST GUARD The Japanese fishing vessel Kotobuki Maru No. 38 sits at the pier within Midway's inner harbor after suffering damage Thursday to a fuel oil tank.

Fishing boat leaks fuel off Midway

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service officials will resume the cleanup today and assess whether there was any environmental damage from a diesel fuel spill in the Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge.

Officials said the Japanese long-line fishing vessel Kotobuki Maru No. 38 began leaking an estimated 2,640 gallons of marine diesel fuel at about 8:30 p.m. Thursday while delivering an injured crew member to Midway Atoll for medical evacuation.

Refuge staff met the vessel in Midway's harbor, escorted it to the pier, and surrounded it with a boom to contain the oil spill. The vessel still had 34,320 gallons of fuel on onboard, officials said.

Only a light sheen was reported on the water within the boom this morning.

"It obviously collided with something. There are other things out there besides the reef that it could have run into," said Barbara Maxfield, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service spokesperson. An investigation is underway into the cause of the spill.

Maxfield added that as far as she knows so far no animals have been affected by the spill, which involves what she described as "lightweight" diesel fuel.

The spill occurred in both the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands Marine National Monument and the Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge. Hawaiian monk seals, sea turtles and coral reefs live in the sanctuary. The oil could also pose a danger to the albatross and other birds that nest on the island if it comes ashore, Maxfield said.

Staff could not inspect the vessel yesterday because seas were too rough, she said.

Seventeen volunteers counting albatrosses on the atoll and a team from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration working with monk seals in the area will help watch for oiled animals, Maxfield said.

Pacific Environmental Company, a private contractor hired by the Japanese company that owns the damaged vessel is also helping with the response to the spill.

A Coast Guard C-130 left Honolulu yesterday for Midway carrying supplies, Coast Guard personnel and other workers to assist with the cleanup, damage assessment and repair of the vessel.

The Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge was established in 1988, while the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands Marine National Monument was established this year to protect the natural resources in the area.