[StBernard] ICP Houma working to establish handling/reporting protocol for oiled seafood

[Westley Annis]

ICP Houma working to establish handling/reporting protocol for oiled seafood

There was a incident on Monday of a fishermen delivering a batch of oiled
crabs to B&K Seafood in Yscloskey in St. Bernard Parish. Upon delivery to
the dock, the crabs were noted as having a distinct smell of oil and a sheen
could be seen on the sorting table. A call was placed that evening to the
Deepwater Horizon Response hotline established to report oiled wildlife. A
report was filed and a report number generated for this incident. A
biologist was sent from the Deepwater Horizon Incident Command Post in Houma
to investigate the incident and pick up crab samples for testing the
following afternoon. Reportedly, the crab samples saved from the catch were
placed in a tainted box which itself had been used to store motor oil. The
biologist from ICP Houma deemed the samples as tainted and did not retain
the crabs for testing. The remaining crabs from the catch were reportedly
thrown back, leaving no specimens available for testing. 

The fishermen responsible for Monday's reported oiled crab catch deployed to
the same spot Wednesday, the Bayou St. Milo/Stump Lagoon area, to check his
remaining crab traps for any signs of oil. He brought two boxes of crabs
back to the dock in the afternoon, both of which had no smell or signs of
oil or sheen. 

The Environmental Unit at the Incident Command Post in Houma is reportedly
working the issue and says it will have the proper protocol for the handling
and reporting of oiled seafood developed and disseminated within a day or
two. At this time, reports of oiled seafood should be called in to the
toll-free hotline established for reporting oiled wildlife. That number is
866-557-1401.