Hamilton said no loading could be done if the terminal is threatened by an ash cloud because of the buildup of static electricity associated with ash. That can cause hydrocarbon vapors to ignite.
On April 4, a Tesoro-operated tanker approached the Christy Lee offshore terminal and had to turn back when an eruption occurred and static electricity was observed.
Static electricity was even experienced in Homer, about 60 miles east of the volcano, when ash fell on that community.
When ash is vented, the Coast Guard typically orders a halt to fuel transfers and vessel operations from Homer to Anchorage as a precaution, Hamilton said. Wherever there is potential for ash fallout there can also be static electricity, he said.
The Tesoro tanker that was diverted April 4 returned to the terminal the following day and about 6 million gallons of oil were transferred from the storage tanks.
Both the Tesoro and Chevron tankers were escorted by tugs to provide assistance if needed. If ash was vented from the volcano and winds carried it toward the terminal, the loading can be shut down immediately, Hamilton said, and lines can be dropped and the tanker moved off the loading terminal in 30 minutes. The tug is there to help if any problems develop.
The Alaska Volcano Observatory monitors activity at Redoubt in real time and can alert the Coast Guard and Cook Inlet Pipe Line if a venting occurs. The National Weather Service is also doing on-spot weather forecasts for the terminal area, paying particular attention to wind directions at higher altitudes, which could bring an ash cloud over the terminal.
"If there is an eruption, it typically takes two to four hours for a lahar, or mud-water flow, to reach the terminal," Ficken said.
Hamilton said there were no spills of oil or mixed oil and water during that transfer or the one on April 28.
"In fact, we have no record of any spill at the Drift River terminal in its 40 years of operation," Hamilton said.
The Coast Guard requires even very minor discharges, enough to cause a light sheen, to be reported as a spill, he said.
One of the success stories for the terminal is that an $18 million, 25-foot protective dike built around the terminal's main facilities after the 1989 eruption and flood successfully withstood two flooding events in the current eruption.
Water and mud did cover the runway and got into one building, but there was no damage.
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