Update 6: Vessel salvage crews continue clean-up operations in Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria

united states coast guard

Press Release

Hurricane Maria ESF-10 Puerto Rico
Press Contact: 939-401-6872
Vessel Hotline: 786-521-3900
USCGESF10Maria@gmail.com

Update 6: Vessel salvage crews continue clean-up operations in Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria

Crews work to dewater storm-impacted vessels in Palmas del Mar, Puerto Rico

Members of the Hurricane Maria ESF-10 response work to dewater vessels impacted by the hurricane in Palmas del Mar, Puerto Rico, Jan. 16, 2018. The team was comprised of members of the Coast Guard and local salvage crews, working in the ESF-10 effort to remove the boats that were stranded in the hurricane. The ESF-10 is offering no-cost options for removing these vessels; affected boat owners are asked to call the Vessel Owner Outreach Hotline at (786) 521-3900. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Lara Davis)

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SAN JUAN – The Emergency Support Function 10 (ESF-10) Puerto Rico unified command continues to ask that vessel owners in need of assistance call the Hurricane Maria Vessel Hotline at (786) 521-3900 to request free support to remove a vessel, report a vessel removal plan, or report a vessel that has already been removed.

Hurricane Maria ESF-10 Puerto Rico response teams conducted boat removal operations today at Palmas del Mar and assessed storm-damaged vessels in Salinas. Since the last update, salvage crews have removed 12 more vessels. Outreach efforts to locate vessel owners continue. The effort will next progress to Jobos Bay southward and then to the islands in the east.

Response teams have identified 376 impacted vessels to date, with 213 of those cases now closed. Teams have made contact with 221 vessel owners, and responded to 35 pollution reports. Responders have dewatered 11,500 gallons of oily water mixture, reducing the potential environmental impact on Puerto Rico’s natural resources.

The ESF-10 Puerto Rico continues to remove damaged vessels, which pose pollution and environmental threats, at no cost or penalty to the vessel owners. Under the unified direction of the Puerto Rico Department of Natural and Environmental Resources and the U.S. Coast Guard, the goal is to remove each vessel while mitigating public health risk, preserving native habitat, and increasing the Commonwealth’s ability to reconstitute.

The DNER and the Coast Guard in conjunction with the Puerto Rico Environmental Quality Control Board, the Environmental Protection Agency, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service stood up the ESF-10 command post in Puerto Rico Sept. 27, 2017, after Hurricane Maria struck the island on Sept. 19.

Editor’s note: Media interested in covering salvage operations and conducting interviews with crews are encouraged to contact the Public Information Officer at 939-401-6872.

-USCG-

IMPORTANT LINKS

Official U.S. Coast Guard Hurricane Maria video and imagery

FEMA Hurricane Maria resources

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