The Coast Guard continued to work with local and federal authorities to help restore traffic and ensure public safety, after a March 9 collision in the Houston Shop Channel that resulted in the spillage of 216,000 barrels of a dangerous chemical. The collision between the 600-foot chemical tanker Carla Maersk and 623-foot bulk carrier Conti Peridot caused the spill of the chemical, Methyl Tertiary Butyl Ether (MTBE). After Coast Guard crews responded to the immediate incident, service officials closed the channel to ship traffic for a portion of the channel’s route.