An unqualified mate was piloting the Exxon Valdez when it crashed into rocks resulting in the worst oil spill in US history. The Long Beach-bound tanker was actually involved in two separate accidents, first hitting a jagged rock pinnacle a mile outside shipping lanes, then after going two more miles, hit more underwater rocks. Exxon did not know if Iarossi took the wheel before the second accident. Mate Gregory Cousins did not have Coast Guard certification to pilot through the Sound. The International Bird Rescue Center set up a rehabilitation center and experts from the Hubbs Marine Research Institute in San Diego were to arrive today.
An unqualified mate was piloting the Exxon Valdez when it crashed into rocks resulting in the worst oil spill in US history. The Long Beach-bound tanker was actually involved in two separate accidents, first hitting a jagged rock pinnacle a mile outside shipping lanes, then after going two more miles, hit more underwater rocks. Exxon did not know if Captain Hazelwood took the wheel before the second accident. Mate Gregory Cousins did not have Coast Guard certification to pilot through the Sound. The International Bird Rescue Center set up a rehabilitation center and experts from the Hubbs Marine Research Institute in San Diego were to arrive today.