GALVESTON, Texas – The U.S. Coast Guard says it is working to free a tanker that has run aground in shallow water in the Gulf of Mexico 22 miles off the coast of Galveston, Texas.
Coast Guard spokeswoman Renee Aiello says the 800-foot tanker is carrying 620,000 barrels of an unknown fuel.
She says the crew of a Coast Guard helicopter has flown over the ship and seen no evidence of a fuel spill.
Aiello says the Yasa Golden Dardanelles ran aground sometime Friday while waiting for a pilot to guide it into the Houston Ship Channel.
Officials from the Coast Guard are working with other federal and state agencies and a salvage company to plan a strategy for freeing the vessel.
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