Exxon Valdez oil spill

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Exxon Valdez oil spill

environmental disaster, Prince William Sound, Alaska, United States [1989]

Written and fact-checked by The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Last Updated: Mar 17, 2024 • Article History

Exxon Valdez oil spill

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Category: History & Society

Date:: March 24, 1989

Location:: Alaska; Gulf of Alaska; Kodiak Island; Prince William Sound; United States

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Exxon Valdez oil spill, massive oil spill that occurred on March 24, 1989, in Prince William Sound, an inlet in the Gulf of Alaska, Alaska, U.S. The incident happened after an Exxon Corporation tanker, the Exxon Valdez, ran aground on Bligh Reef during a voyage from Valdez, Alaska, to California. Delayed efforts to contain the spill and naturally strong winds and waves dispersed nearly 11,000,000 gallons (41,640 kilolitres) of North Slope crude oil across the sound. The spill eventually polluted 1,300 miles (2,092 kilometres) of indented shoreline, as well as adjacent waters, as far south as the southern end of ...(100 of 352 words)

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