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Coast Guard Still Working To Clear Chemical Out Of Sunken Barge

Coast Guard crews have begun the tedious process of pulling 10,000 gallons of chemicals from an old shipwreck sitting at the bottom of Lake Erie.

The Argo sank in 1937 with 4,700 barrels of petroleum-based chemicals on board.

An amateur diver discovered the wreck in August, and also noticed a strong odor in the water.

M-Live reports that crews, over the weekend, cleared benzene from the first of eight tanks inside the ship. They’ll try and empty another tank later this week.

Benzene is a flammable chemical that’s used to make plastic.

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