Exxon Valdez Capt. Joseph Hazelwood dies at 75
Joseph Hazelwood, the captain of the Exxon Valdez that grounded on Alaska’s Bligh Reef in 1989, causing one of the nation’s worst oil spills, has died
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — Joseph Hazelwood, the captain of the Exxon Valdez oil tanker that ran aground more than three decades ago in Alaska, causing one of the worst oil spills in U.S. history, has died, the New York Times reported. He was 75.
He died in July after struggling with COVID-19 and cancer, his nephew Sam Hazelwood told the newspaper for a story reported Friday. Hazelwood's family members and business associates did not respond to The Associated Press for comment.
The Exxon Valdez, a 987-foot (301-meter) tanker, grounded on Alaska’s Bligh Reef at 12:04 a.m. on March 24, 1989, spewing nearly 11 million gallons (41 million liters) of oil into the rich fishing waters of Prince William Sound. Currents and storms carried the crude over 1,200 miles (1,931 kilometers) of Alaska coastline.
The Exxon Valdez Oil Spill Trustee Council estimates the spill killed a quarter million seabirds, 2,800 sea otters, 300 harbor seals, 250 bald eagles, up to 22 killer whales and billions of fish eggs. It took years for the fish numbers to rebound following the spill, and oil can still be found under the surface of some beaches in Prince William Sound.
