Most Big Spills Virtually Unnoticed

A quick oil-spill quiz: Ever hear of the Mandoil II?

It was a tanker that suffered a massive spill near here, rivaling that of the Exxon Valdez. As much as 12 million gallons of crude oil spilled a few hundred miles off the Oregon Coast. Eleven foreign crew members were burned to death or drowned in oily seas when the Liberian-flagged tanker collided with a Japanese freighter.

Don't feel bad if you can't remember it. The press barely covered it in 1968. Only a couple of stories in The Seattle Times. No 10-year anniversary coverage.

How about the Castillo de Bellver, Hawaiian Patriot, Epic Colocotronis or the Haven?

Big tanker spills, ranging from two to seven times the size of the 11-million-gallon Exxon Valdez spill. And in each case, not much news coverage in this area.

The Hawaiian Patriot, a Liberian-flagged tanker, broke apart in heavy seas a few hundred miles from Hawaii. It caught fire, killed a crew member and spilled 31 million gallons of oil. But the 20th anniversary came and went two years ago without fanfare.

The Epic Colocotronis was a Greek-flagged tanker that spilled 18 million gallons of oil 60 miles from Puerto Rico. The Haven spilled 42 million gallons off Italy eight years ago.

Oh, and Castillo de Bellver? When it exploded and killed three crew members off South Africa in 1983, it became the worst tanker spill ever, at 78 million gallons.

When it comes to size, the Exxon Valdez spill ranks about 50th worldwide, but first in media coverage. The Seattle Times computerized library had 1,250 hits for "Exxon Valdez." The Lexus/Nexus news database couldn't handle the request because there were too many stories on the Exxon Valdez - but had nothing on the Mandoil, an estimated spill of six to 12 million gallons.

Of course, there is one good reason the Exxon Valdez spill got so much more attention: It occurred not in open seas, as did the others, but in the inland waters of Alaska's Prince William Sound. The result was an environmental mess unrivaled by the other spills and generally considered the worst environmental disaster in American history.