Fishing vessel sinks off San Juan Islands, leaking fuel

At 2:00pm on Saturday the U.S. Coast Guard received a distress call from a commercial fishing vessel named the Aleutian Isle. The vessel was near the San Juan Islands and taking on water.

The crew onboard evacuated to a small skiff before being picked up by a good Samaritan, and the Aleutian Isle eventually sank to the sea floor, where it remains today.

The boat had around 2,600 gallons of diesel in its tank, and emergency responders are now dealing with that fuel leaking to the surface. Diesel easily evaporates, and responders are reporting that the sheen on the surface -- at one point two miles in length -- is quickly burning off.

To make matters even more complicated, the boat has moved to deeper waters, making it more difficult for divers and responders to locate and dredge the boat back up.

There were also reported sightings of southern resident orcas near the pollution site on the day the Aleutian Isle sank. Responders were prepared with oikomi pipes, which when banged with a hammer, send an annoying and dissuading sound to marine life. However, a few hours after the vessel sank whale researchers spotted the majority of the southern resident population outside Victoria, British Columbia, and researchers believe the pod did not follow their usual route north along the San Juan Islands, dodging any potential exposure.

Libby Denkmann checked in with KUOW environment reporter John Ryan to hear the latest on the Aleutian Isle, and you can read his in-depth reporting here.