2010 Port Arthur oil spill 2010 Port Arthur oil spill The 2010 Port Arthur oil spill was the result of a collision between two vessels in the Sabine-Neches Waterway at Port Arthur, Texas on January 23, 2010. The two vessels were the oil tanker "Eagle Otome" and a barge being pushed by the towboat "Dixie Vengeance". The barge collided with the tanker at about 09:30 local time on January 23, 2010, in the Sabine-Neches Waterway as the tanker, chartered by Exxon-Mobil from AET Incorporated to move oil to Exxon's refinery in Beaumont, Texas, moved upstream, and the barge was being maneuvered out of the harbor.
Refugio oil spill rest of the Refugio coastline south of the spill. The spill was much smaller than the nearby 1969 Santa Barbara oil spill on January 28, 1969 in which an oil rig blow-out spilled an estimated of crude oil over a ten-day period. The thick crude oil damaged the coats, skin, beaks, and appendages of hundreds of animals. Workers eventually collected 202 dead birds and 99 dead mammals which included at least 46 sea lions and 12 dolphins. The full impact will never be known since animals may travel a distance before succumbing to their injuries. Sixty-five live birds and sixty-three