Our California Statewide Law Enforcement Association (CSLEA) members who are emergency responders are getting praise for springing into quick action when a tanker scraped a Bay Bridge tower Monday, January 7th. 

“It was a near miss as far as an oil spill,” said CSLEA President Alan Barcelona. “But our members with the Office of Spill Prevention and Response (OSPR) were right there checking for any oil that may have been released.”

The OSPR is a unit within the Department of Fish and Wildlife and is quickly gaining fame for its team of oil spill specialists who know how to get the job done.  These oil spill specialists are so good at what they do, often other states call upon them for help with their own oil spill disasters.

Other CSLEA members who raced into action were the emergency management experts at the California Emergency Management Agency (CalEMA).   A command post was set up almost immediately.   Fortunately this event was not much more than a tanker versus bridge “side-swipe” and both the bridge and the bay escaped nearly unscathed.  

“It was an emergency response that became more of an exercise in emergency response,” said Barcelona.  “And our CSLEA members who are public safety professionals rose to the occasion.   California is a safer place because of their work, their dedication and their expertise.”