News Bulletin 1392
Heavy rainfall closes roadway to Valdez Marine Terminal

ANCHORAGE, AK – Heavy rainfall and flooding in south-central Alaska has caused Alyeska Pipeline Service Company to limit the number of personnel required to report to work at the Valdez Marine Terminal on Tuesday until officials can verify the integrity of the Allison Creek Bridge. The bridge is located on Dayville Road, a five-mile stretch along the main route that leads to the terminal. Only those employees essential to operations reported to work at the Valdez City Harbor and were transported to the terminal via the Valdez Spirit, an 82-foot-long passenger vessel owned by Stan Stephens’ Glacier Wildlife Cruises.

On Monday, Alyeska established a small Incident Management Team to address employee safety and access to the terminal. Alyeska is working with government agencies on the flooding and the structural integrity of the roadway and the five bridges along the route. Should an emergency arise, an evacuation plan is in place to safely transport personnel from the terminal.

Dayville Road was originally constructed in the late 1970’s during the construction of the Trans Alaska Pipeline System (TAPS) and terminal facilities. The road is maintained by the state of Alaska and was being reconstructed this past year to bring the route up to National Highway Standards. Nearly 500 Alyeska employees travel the road to work each day. In addition to the terminal facility, the road provides access to the Copper Valley Electric hydroelectric plant, Valdez Fisheries hatchery, Allison Point Fishing Area, and the Petro Star Oil Refinery.

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