261 barrels of crude oil removed from Texas City ditch after spill detected on Christmas

TEXAS CITY, Texas (KTRK) -- Residents in Texas City may notice crews in the area working to clean up an oil spill that was discovered last week.

The spill was first detected on Christmas Day near an oil pumping station on the city's west side when people who live nearby complained about a strong oil odor.

According to the Texas City Emergency Management, 261 barrels of sweet crude oil, which is approximately 11,000 gallons, have been collected so far from Moses Bayou, a drainage ditch (Ditch No. 6) that flows into Galveston Bay.

The waterway reportedly does not intersect or flow into the Gulf Coast Water Authority's nearby freshwater supply canals.

Authorities discovered the spill came from a small facility on Century Boulevard that reported an issue with its oil-water separator, which caused an overflow.

Despite complaints of heavy odor, officials said there are no reports of any medical calls to the area due to exposure.

Those in the area are still being asked to continue to avoid contact with the affected area and/or affected wildlife.

An Environmental Protection Agency representative said that as of Saturday, a blue heron was rescued from the spill but later died, and a dead Belted Kingfisher was found.

"We have multiple agencies conducting air monitoring, including the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), CTEH, the Texas City Fire Department, and E3 OMI, at no point during this incident has anyone detected a reading that would indicate a threat to health," Texas City Emergency Management Coordinator Joe Tumbleson said. "All partners represented in the Emergency Operations Center concur that there has been no impact to area well water or to surface water that feeds into our drinking water system."

Tumbleson added that there was no impact to Moses Lake and that the spill was contained.

Moses Bayou is expected to be fully restored by Feb. 15.