Port team in oil spill exercise

ABP’s Incident Management Team took part in a fast-paced incident management exercise at the Port of Hull on the Humber. The training was facilitated by Adler and Allan and tested all aspects of the plan from strategy and resources to business continuity, public health, and environmental concerns.

Head of marine for ABP’s Humber ports, Gary Wilson, said, “The exercise response was timely and well addressed by the whole team who mobilised to site within the response requirements. These exercises are incredibly valuable to our operation and the Humber.”

‘Exercise Rotra’ presented a scenario in which a visiting cargo vessel accidently released 5,000 litres of marine gas oil into Alexandra Dock with an estimated 300 litres spilt into the Humber. The ABP Tier 1 teams tackled the spill with a work boat and oil spill equipment ahead of Adler and Allan’s Marine Response service which then deployed inflatable booms to create a temporary floating barrier in the water.

For the first time in such an exercise, the Humber Marine Control Centre at Grimsby was used and stakeholders included UM Storage, Siemens Gamesa and the police. A full notification exercise was carried out by ABP including organisations such as the local authority, Environment Agency and the MCA. As part of the UK National Standards for Marine Oil Spill Response Organisations (OSRO), the accrediting body must observe a practical deployment exercise reflecting the OSRO’s Capability Statement.