Oil spill forces Jamie Whitten Lock and Dam to shut down

PRENTISS COUNTY, Miss. (WCBI) – An oil spill has forced the Jamie Whitten Lock and Dam to shut down.

Mitch Mays with the Tenn-Tom Waterway said that an incident involving a barge caused crude oil to spill into the lock chamber.

The U.S. Army Corps. Of Engineers in the Mobile district said Sunday, a merchant vessel loaded with two barges of crude oil was locking southbound through the lock and dam when a collision happened.

The Jamie Whitten Lock and Dam is a part of the Tenn-Tom Waterway.

It’s located in Prentiss County at Bay Springs Lake.

The Jamie Whitten Lock and Dam will be closed until further notice.

The U.S. Coast Guard, Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers are all assessing the spill.