Cleanup continues on Chicago ship canal

Cleanup continues on Chicago ship canal    Despite inclement weather, cleanup and salvage operations are progressing on the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal at the site of an explosion Jan. 19 on a barge carrying more than 500,000 gallons of clarified slurry oil.
   The blast sank the barge in the Sanitary and Ship Canal, which connects the Great Lakes and the Mississippi River. The U.S. Coast Guard subsequently closed the channel to vessel traffic.
   A boiler on the barge is believed to have exploded, igniting the clarified slurry oil, the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency said in a statement.
   Clarified slurry oil, a gooey petroleum by-product, has the consistency of honey and becomes thicker in cold water, which could reduce environmental hazards. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has conducted one hydro survey of the Sanitary and Ship Canal with inconclusive results, and has begun a second testing. The Coast Guard now has on site a salvage response team of staff engineers to assist the captain of the port of Chicago in removing the sunken barge.
   Maggie Carson, a spokesperson for the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency, said that Egan Marine Corp., based in the Chicago suburb of Lemont, operated the barge and would be responsible for cleanup operations. The Coast Guard said it was 'working closely' with Egan Marine and the Corps of Engineers, and had opened an investigation into the cause of the explosion.