42,000 gallon oil spill threatens Tulsa's water

[Double A]

Officials worry about Coffeyville oil spill into Verdigris River


By Associated Press
7/2/2007  10:02 AM
Last Modified: 7/2/2007  10:05 AM

COFFEYVILLE, Kansas -- More than 42,000 gallons of crude oil spilled into the Verdigris River from the Coffeyville Resources refinery Sunday, said Sharon Watson, spokeswoman for the Kansas Emergency Management Agency.

The river flows south into Oklahoma.

The Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality was assessing the situation Monday and didn't know the extent of the problem, DEQ spokeswoman Skylar McElhaney said.

The plant was closing in response to the flooding when the accident occurred. The plant had been transferring oil from a storage facility to the refinery's main storage tank. Because of an elevation difference between the two tanks, the oil continued to flow and caused the main tank to overflow, Watson said.

``We're asking everyone to avoid the floodwaters (in the Coffeyville area),'' Watson said.

Maj. Gen. Tod Bunting, the state adjutant, said the oil was expected to flow from the Verdigris to the Neosho River and eventually end up in Grand Lake.

``The water's moving too fast for us to do anything with it right now,'' Bunting said Monday morning.