Kansas oil, sewage flow south Kansas oil, sewage floats south
From Staff Reports
Published: July 3, 2007
Rain-swollen rivers and streams carried an estimated 42,000 gallons of crude oil spilled from a Coffeyville, Kan., refinery, as well as sewage, into Oklahoma on Monday.
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The oil is headed for Lake Oologah, a Tulsa water source, but Oklahoma officials hope it dissipates on the way.
The oil spilled into the Verdigris River from the Coffeyville Resources refinery on Sunday. Coffeyville is on the Oklahoma-Kansas state line.
"There are nine public water supplies along the Verdigris and Lake Oologah, and none of them are currently affected,” said Skylar McElhaney, a spokeswoman for the Department of Environmental Quality.
McElhaney said most of the water systems draw water from deep in the lake and most of the oil appears to be floating at the surface. During aerial surveys Sunday and Monday, it appeared the oil had reached a causeway but has not entered the main body of the lake.
McElhaney said officials were optimistic the spill will dissipate before it reached Lake Oologah.
However, residents along the river should be aware that the sewage treatment plant in South Coffeyville was flooded, which will cause a danger of bacteria in the river, said Miles Tolbert, Oklahoma's secretary of environment. Communities along the river are being encouraged to increase testing levels.
The oil will end up in Lake Oologah, about 30 miles northeast of Tulsa, Tolbert said. The city of Tulsa plans to stop drawing water from the lake, he said.
"We are hopeful that because of the large amounts of water that are out there that the oil will be spread out and diluted and displaced and not cause a tremendous problem,” Gov. Brad Henry said.
Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius called Henry on Monday to apologize.
"She's very concerned and offered her help and assistance,” Henry said.
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Heavy rains flooded this refinery on the east side of Coffeyville, Kan., on Monday. BY GARY CROW, FOR THE OKLAHOMAN
OTHER DEVELOPMENTS
Three states watch flooding
Texas
•Hundreds of people were still unable to return to their homes near the Wichita and Brazos rivers because of flooding, power failures or fears of contaminated water.
•A 14-year-old boy who had been playing with his younger sisters was rescued from an Arlington drainage channel after being swept a half-mile downstream through at least three culverts, Fire Battalion Chief David Stapp said. The youngest girl, 8, managed to escape the water and call for help, and her brother and 10-year-old sister were rescued, none seriously injured, Stapp said.
•Several people in Laredo were rescued from homes and vehicles, including a city bus, police said.
•Eleven deaths have been blamed on the storms and flooding in Texas, where two men are missing.
Kansas
•Residents of Osawatomie, Kan., were waiting for Pottawatomie Creek and the Marais des Cygnes River to recede. Forty percent of its 4,600 residents evacuated the city Sunday.
•President Bush on Monday night declared a major disaster in Kansas and ordered federal aid for recovery efforts related to storms and flooding that began June 26.
Missouri
•Flooding on the Marais des Cygnes has destroyed at least six homes near the community of Virginia.
The Associated Press
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