On June 27, 2025, a private sailboat capsized
and sunk in the Columbia River near Hell’s Gate Canyon, near Miller Island. The
sailboat threatened to discharge between 15-30 gallons of diesel fuel and and lubricating oils inside the cabin. The vessel was located approximately 100 feet from tribal fishing traditional
scaffolding in a ecologically and culturally sensitive area, as the Yakama
Nation and other tribal members of the Columbia River Intertribal Fishing
Commission exercise their treaty rights to fish on limited designated days. The vessel was in the path of endangered salmon species migrating upstream
and posed a substantial economic risk to the affected tribes.
This incident is within EPA jurisdiction. EPA is in Unified Command with Yakama Nation and Washington Department of Ecology (ECY). ECY and EPA have both deployed their contractors to assist with the recovery of the pollution sources onboard the vessel.
