The Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation says fuel is spilling into Unalaska Bay following a LifeMed plane crash early Thursday morning.
“An unknown amount of Jet A fuel has been released at this time,” the DEC said in a written statement. “The fuel capacity of a King Air B200 Aircraft is 545 gallons. The U.S. Coast Guard reports there was an estimated 430-440 gallons of Jet A on board at the time of takeoff.”
The LifeMed medevac plane crashed into the water approximately 100 feet northwest of the end of the runway shortly after takeoff from the Unalaska airport on its way to pick up a medevac patient in Adak. The cause of the plane crash is unknown.
The plane has sunk below the water’s surface into 60-100 feet of water, and the fuel vents are unsecured, leaving the source uncontrolled, according to the DEC.
Vessel traffic has been routed away from the area of the crash by Coast Guard personnel.
Divers haven’t been deployed to the sunken plane. A marine salvage contractor is set to raise the plane in the coming days, weather permitting.
Unalaska Bay supports several species listed under the Endangered Species Act that are likely to be present now, including Steller sea lions, Northern sea otters and Steller’s eiders.
