Officials assessing impact of barge collision in Texas

GALVESTON COUNTY, Texas — Fire crews have put out a blaze that broke out aboard a barge after it collided with another barge near Galveston.

U.S. Coast Guard Petty Officer Andrew Kendrick said two tugboats were pushing a total of four barges early Monday morning near the Bolivar Peninsula when one of the boats lost power. The barge it was pushing then collided with another barge near the entrance to the Houston Ship Channel.

A fire erupted on a barge carrying about a million gallons of the petroleum product naphtha. According to the Encyclopaedia Brittanica, naphtha is a highly flammable liquid used in the conversion to gasoline. Other barges also were carrying cumene, which is also a flammable liquid.

Crews extinguished the flames about four hours later, and there were no injuries reported. It remains unclear how much of the chemical products leaked into the waterway, however.

The glow of the fire could be seen for miles as firefighters worked to get a handle on the blaze.

The Galveston/Bolivar ferry service was not disrupted, but a segment of the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway is expected to be closed throughout the day.

The Coast Guard says it first needs to assess damage to the barges and then it can figure out how much cargo was lost. Remaining cargo will then be transferred to other barges before the damaged ones can be towed away.

Three of the four barges were damaged, according to the Coast Guard.

Contributing: The Associated Press.