rude oil per voyage. (see pictures at bottom). Initial measurements by the chief mate about 30 minutes after the grounding indicated that 115,000 barrels of the 1,263,000 barrels loaded had been lost. By 6:00am, gauge readings indicated about 215,000 barrels had been lost. Three methods were tried in the effort to clean up the spill: burning, mechanical cleanup and chemical dispersants. A trial burn was conducted during the early stages of the spill. A fire-resistant boom was placed on tow lines, and two ends of the boom were each attached to a ship. The two ships then towed the boom away from the slick and the oil was ignited. Shortly after the spill, mechanical cleanup was started using booms and skimmers. Thick oil and heavy kelp tended to clog the equipment. Repairs to damaged skimmers were time consuming. Transferring oil from temporary storage vessels into more permanent containers was also difficult because of the oil's weight and thickness. Continued bad weather slowed down the recovery efforts. In addition, a trial application of dispersants was performed. The use of dispersants proved to be controversial. Alyeska had less than 4,000 gallons of dispersant available in its terminal in Valdez, and no application equipment or aircraft. A private company applied dispersants on March 24, with a helicopter and dispersant bucket. All of the methods used proves to be less successful than originally thought, and the Exxon Valdez oil spill is still one of the most horrible ecological disasters of all time....
