SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Days after an oil tanker struck a San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge tower, the Coast Guard is calling for reconsideration of rules that allow large ships to sail in fog near the span.
The San Jose Mercury News reports that Capt. Cynthia Stowe, a top Coast Guard official, on Thursday asked the San Francisco Bay Harbor Safety Committee to reconsider the rules.
Officials in 2008 exempted the Bay Bridge from a list of nine risky areas where ship captains are told not to sail in dense fog.
The committee helps write shipping safety rules for the bay. They will report back in two weeks with a recommendation.
On Monday the 752-foot Overseas Reymar scraped a section of a protective fender from a bridge tower.
An incident investigation is ongoing.
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Information from: San Jose (Calif.) Mercury News, http://www.mercurynews.com
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