Fuel Spill Closes Marina Engine Workshop

CHATHAM – A fuel spill at Stage Harbor Marina has shut down the shorefront facility’s engine repair shop, and the fate of the building is currently in the hands of insurance companies.

The 80 Bridge St. building, along with the main marina structure, are slated for eventual demolition and replacement; the project has been before the historic business district commission twice for informal discussions but a formal application has not yet been filed.

As of last week, no demolition permit had been filed for the workshop, according to Building Commissioner Jay Briggs.

 On Sept. 29, approximately 50 gallons of diesel fuel were released after the marina’s 1,000 gallon in-ground tank was overfilled during a fuel delivery. According to a notice from the Massachusetts Environmental Protection Department’s Southeast Regional Office, the spill was believed to be caused by operator error.

 The fuel tank ruptured and the overage spilled out of an overflow pipe located at the workshop, according to Fire Chief Justin Tavano. The diesel cascaded down the roof and side of the building and flowed down the boat ramp toward the harbor. A catch basin at the base of the ramp caught most of the fuel, he said.

 A fuel sheen could be seen in the water, and absorbent booms were placed around the marina area by employees and later by a contractor hired to clean up the spill. The harbormaster’s office also deployed a boat and cleanup equipment to the site, as did the fire department, Tavano said. About 1,000 feet of containment boom was used. 

 The fire department also used a drone to assess the situation, which was “super helpful,” Tavano said. The Coast Guard and town’s shellfish and coastal resources departments were notified of the situation, along with DEP, he said. No active shellfish beds were endangered, he added.

 Contractor Reworld was hired to head the cleanup and worked through the night, Tavano said, using a vacuum skimmer to remove most of the fuel from the water.

 “The next day there was no evidence of a sheen,” he said.

 The double-walled underground diesel tank was excavated, revealing that while the inner tank was breached, the outer tank was intact. Tests of soil around the tank showed no contamination.

 Fuel saturated walls in the workshop and electricity to the building was disconnected, although Tavano said because of diesel’s high combustion temperature there was little concern about fire. He said he recommended the building be removed. Briggs said that was also the position of the marina’s insurers, while the insurance company representing fuel company Diesel Direct was recommending that it be repaired.

 Tavano said the marina owners and employees responded to the spill in a timely and appropriate manner.

 “It could have been much worse if they didn’t get to it when they did,” he said. “It could have gotten out into the channel and we’d have been chasing it.”

 A representative of the marina said that equipment, including engines, under repair in the workshop has not been accessible, and boats could not be hauled out for several weeks. An above ground diesel tank was brought in, mainly to ensure that fuel is available to the Coast Guard.