KINGSTON — Armed with booms, tarps and other prevention gear, first responders and other groups from throughout Kitsap County congregated at the Kingston Marina Tuesday afternoon to learn how to best combat the hazardous and devastating effects of an oil spill.
Representatives from North Kitsap Fire & Rescue, Port of Bainbridge, Suquamish Police Department, Port of Kingston, the U.S. Coast Guard and Bainbridge Island fire and police departments converged at the site for training provided by the Washington State Department of Ecology and Seattle-based Global Diving and Salvage. Instruction coincided with the delivery of an oil spill response trailer, which will be stationed at the Kingston Marina.
“I signed up because we dispense fuel here, and we felt it was a good idea,” said Port of Kingston marina attendant Jeff Bradley, one of several port officials at the training. “It’s good to know what’s going on, and this is a way to protect our marina.”
Training was provided by Global Diving and Salvage representative Sarah Burroughs, who explained the equipment and outlined different ways to contain oil spills.
“We’re excited to have the trailers here,” said Bainbridge Island harbormaster Tami Allen. Bainbridge is now home to an identical response trailer, as are Poulsbo and Point Julia on the Port Gamble S’Klallam Reservation. “You can only get here by a bridge or ferry, and what if there were an emergency where the bridge or ferry was out? It’s great the DOE gave us a trailer, because if suddenly we’re an isolated island, we have ways to protect our waters and beaches.”
Local agencies would work in concert and ensure that if one was busy, another would be able to try to contain a spill, said DOE spill prevention section manager David Byers. First responders and port employees are the preferred training candidates because they work near the water and can get to an incident quickly, keeping oil from spreading and reducing the environmental impacts.
“We have to balance this with our other responsibilities,” said NKF&R public information officer Michele Laboda. “We’re really relying on our partners, and it’s why having those partners is important. If we’re working on a fire or transporting someone, we can’t drop that to combat an oil spill.”
Private citizens can also be trained to assist in oil spill response, Byers said, especially those who take beach walks on a regular basis. Oftentimes, such residents will witness signs of a spill and call it in, alerting the DOE to the threat. Citizen training also informs residents how to spot signs of oil contamination and who to contact.
“I think it’s good they’ve combined the training because we would buddy up during an oil spill,” Allen said. “We’re already working together quite a bit, and with the strategically placed trailers, we need to be able to help each other out.”
