Posted:
Updated:
(WIVB) – Boaters and kayakers should stay away from the Buffalo River in the Babcock Street area between the South Park Avenue and Bailey Avenue bridges due to an ongoing oil recovery operation.
The river area was found to be unsafe.
The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) is working with the U.S. Coast Guard to investigate an oil spill near a combined sewer overflow outlet on the Buffalo River on Saturday morning.
The landfill is located at the former ExxonMobil refinery site on Elk Street, said Lt. JG Joe Neff, U.S. Coast Guard public affairs officer for the Buffalo area.
Lt. Neff said the vast majority of the oil is contained in a booming area around the outlet and the responsible party is sending a cleanup team to remove the oil under joint surveillance.
“A further assessment of the cause of the oil release remains under investigation and additional information will be provided as it becomes available,” said Neff.
Anyone with questions can contact the Sector Buffalo Command Center at 716-843-9527.
