Lawsuit embroils marine towing company for $250,000 after dredge sinks off Oregon coast
October 6, 2018
ASTORIA, Oregon (AP) — The Port of Chinook has filed a $250,000 lawsuit against a marine towing company over a dredge that sank in rough waters on the way to Astoria in 2016.
The Daily Astorian reported the lawsuit, filed in Clatsop County Circuit Court, alleged workers with the Ilwaco, Washington towing company caused the accident because they didn’t seal up pipes inside the dredge before towing it.
The newspaper reported fuel from the dredge was pumped out before any leaked into the ocean.
The port’s insurance company hired a salvage contractor to help clean up the damage.
The port is seeking in the lawsuit the amount they spent on clean-up.
The dredge was being towed from Chinook, on the Washington side of the Columbia River, to Astoria.
