Salaky v. Atlas Tank Processing Corp.
| Decision Date | 14 April 1953 |
| Docket Number | No. 18800.,18800. |
| Parties | SALAKY v. ATLAS TANK PROCESSING CORP. et al. THE ATLAS BARGE NO. 3. THE CATHERINE O'BOYLE. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — Eastern District of New York |
Krisel, Beck & Taylor, New York City, Max Taylor, New York City, for libelant.
Isidore Paley, New York City, George A. Berkowitz, New York City, for Atlas Tank Processing Corp.
Macklin, Speer, Hanan & McKernan, New York City, Gerald J. McKernan, New York City, for Jerome E. and Loretta O'Boyle.
Libelant is the assignee of claims of 44 owners of various small craft, including motor boats, sail boats, and row boats, under an assignment executed in the State of New Jersey. He instituted this action to recover damages to these various craft caused by oil sludge and foreign matter allegedly discharged from the barges Catherine O'Boyle and Atlas Barge No. 3 into the waters of Arthur Kill and Raritan Bay in the vicinity of Perth Amboy, New Jersey, on April 24, 1946. These small craft were at that time moored in and about the Yacht Basin at Perth Amboy.
The facts indicate that the O'Boyle barge was docked about one and one-half miles north of the Yacht Basin on the Staten Island side of the Arthur Kill and that the Atlas No. 3 was one-half mile beyond this, tied to a dock on the New Jersey side. The Atlas for several days prior to April 24th had been engaged in cleaning the tanks of three vessels, and on the particular day in question was pumping out the bilges of the S. S. Lahaina Victory. Huley, Inspector of Customs at Perth Amboy, testified that he was at the Yacht Basin between 12 and 2 o'clock on the 24th and saw nothing unusual there at that time. He boarded his picket boat and proceeded to the O'Boyle barge where he noticed that it had a hose leading overboard from its bilge pump. He then proceeded to the dock from which the Atlas was pumping out the bilges of the S. S. Lahaina Victory. The Atlas barge was extremely overloaded, and the bilge which consisted of "oil, salt water and all kinds of mixings" was being "spirited" into the water. He traced an oil slick of about a mile or more south of the dock but between 4 and 5 o'clock in the afternoon when he returned to the Yacht Basin he saw nothing unusual there at that time.
The boatswain's mate on the picket boat accused the O'Boyle captain of pumping oil into the water. He noticed that the pump was hot, the suction line was leading down into the bilge, the discharge line was over the side, and there was oil all around the barge. He also noticed that there was oil in the Yacht Basin at 8 in the morning on the 24th and still there at 5 p. m. of that day.
Two small craft owners testified. Smith who owned a launch service gave testimony that on the morning of the 24th he saw a mixture of oil, bilge, and dirt in the water. His boat was in good condition prior to that morning but subsequently had to be cleaned because of the oil, bilge, and dirt.
Wolfe who resided one block south of the Yacht Basin was the owner of 25 row boats, several outboard boats, a couple of inboard boats, and a small yacht, all of which had been newly painted. He had been on the water all that day. He saw no oil in his boat basin on the morning of the 24th, but about 3:30 p. m. oil began to come into his basin on the ebbtide.
Chambers, called as a witness, testified that he was a watchman aboard the motor vessel Sea Otter which was berthed at the O'Boyle dock and was tied up to the O'Boyle barge. During the night of April 23d and 24th a British tanker had been discharging oil directly opposite to them. When he arose on the morning of the 24th, the waters around the O'Boyle dock were full of bunker "C" oil. In his testimony he denied that the O'Boyle barge was discharging oil, as did the captain of the O'Boyle. The testimony is somewhat contradictory but a summary leads to the conclusion that there was oil in the Yacht Basin on the morning...
To continue reading
Request your trial
-
JW Petersen Coal & Oil Co. v. United States
...collision situation where the vessel itself was the physical instrumentality causing the injury. In Salaky v. Atlas Tank Processing Corp., 120 F.Supp. 225 (E.D.N.Y.1953), reversed on other grounds 208 F.2d 174 (2nd Cir. 1953), row boats moored on land or a shore structure were damaged by oi......
-
R & H Development Co. v. Diesel Tanker, J. A. Martin, Inc.
...the civil admiralty jurisdiction of the statute and therefore falls within the scope of the saving clause. See Salaky v. Atlas Tank Processing Co., 120 F.Supp. 225 (E.D.N.Y.) (small craft damaged from oil sludge); Chicago, B. & Q. R. Co. v. The W. C. Harms, 134 F.Supp. 636 (S.D.Tex.) (colli......
-
Ohio Barge Line, Inc. v. Dravo Corporation
...F.Supp. 1013 (S.D.N.Y.), 316 F.2d 811 (2nd Cir. 1963); Ozanic v. United States, 188 F.2d 228 (2nd Cir. 1951); Salaky v. Atlas Tank Processing Corp., 120 F.Supp. 225 (E.D.N.Y.1953). Dravo concedes that Delta did have a good claim in admiralty against the defendant before it settled with Ohio......
- In re Clements
-
The Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and the Limits of Civil Liability
...are generally recoverable. See, e.g., Oppen v. Aetna Ins. Co., 485 F.2d 252, 257 (9th Cir. 1973); Salaky v. Atlas Tank Processing Corp., 120 F. Supp. 225, 226-28 (E.D.N.Y. 51. See Perry, The Economic Bias, supra note 20, at 1574. 52. 52 Mass. 290, 291 (1846) (holding that an extra expense i......