Incident Photo of The Day – Bad Day at the Office…

Absorbant pads and oil boom float around the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service research vessel Arluk after it sank at the pier in St. Herman’s harbor in Kodiak, Alaska, Feb. 8, 2012.U.S. Coast Guard photo

JUNEAU, Alaska — A research vessel under contract with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service was discovered to have sunk early Friday morning while tied to a pier in Alaska.

The sunken vessel, named the Arluk, was discovered by the Kodiak Harbormaster at approximately 3:30 a.m. in St. Herman’s Harbor, Alaska. The harbormaster was able to quickly deploy boom to contain any potential oil spill.

A Coast Guard Marine Safety Detachment from Kodiak worked with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service all day Friday in response to the incident, while a local salvage company was hired to plug any openings and eventually refloat it.

The Arluk was reported to have approximately 1500 gallons of diesel fuel onboard.

No word yet on what caused the vessel to sink.

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