SF Oil Spill Probe Finds Irregularities

Crew drug tests delayed; feds dispute pilot's claim about radar malfunction
By Sam Gale Rosen,  Newser Staff
Posted Nov 14, 2007 5:52 PM CST
SF Oil Spill Probe Finds Irregularities
The cargo ship that struck the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge and caused a 58,000-gallon oil spill is shown in the San Francisco bay, Tuesday, Nov. 13, 2007. The cargo ship Cosco Busan struck one of four supports beneath the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge's western section last week, opening a 90-foot...   (Associated Press)

The crew of the ship that dumped 58,000 gallons of oil into San Francisco Bay last week wasn't tested for drugs until 53 hours after the crash—a delay well beyond the federally mandated 32 hours, the San Jose Mercury News reports. And a technician says the ship's radar system appears to have been operational despite the pilot's claims it wasn't working.

"The thing definitely wasn't working when the pilot went on board," said the attorney for John Cota in disputing the radar claim by the National Transportation Safety Board. Cota says the ship's radar showed a distorted image of the Bay Bridge shortly before the MS Cosco Busan collided with it on Nov. 7. Federal and criminal investigations are continuing. (More oil spill stories.)

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