The Nushagak commercial fishing district closed after a 58-foot tender sank near Dillingham, spilling fuel into the water.
F/V Pacific Knight was carrying 1,100 gallons of diesel and hydraulic fuel when it sank.
Alaska Department of Fish and Game received a report that people in the area smelled fuel and saw a sheen on the water. How much fuel has spilled was unclear.
The entire Nushagak District closed Thursday in response to the fuel spill. Igushik Section reopened Friday but will close again 6 p.m. Monday.
“We’ll fly a survey (on Monday) and see what we can see,” area management biologist Tim Sands said. ‘But I can’t imagine opening the fishery for a couple days because it will take a while for whatever fuel is out there to dissipate. And if it’s got all the way over to Igushik, I believe it could basically be anywhere in the bay.”
Fish and Game advised subsistence users to “be aware of that possibility” that fuel could potentially float to Dillingham beaches.