A collision between a tugboat pushing a barge and a 600-foot tanker forced authorities to close a 29-mile stretch (47 kilometers) of the Mississippi River at New Orleans, the Coast Guard said.

The crash was very powerful causing the barge to split in half, said Coast Guard Petty Officer Jaclyn Young. The barge was loaded with fuel oil and more than 419,000 gallons (1.5 million liters) of the substance spilled, said Lt. Cdr. Cheri Ben-Iesau, a Coast Guard spokeswoman

The double-hulled tanker Tintomara was shipping about 4.2 million gallons (15.9 million liters) of bio-diesel to Rotterdam, the Netherlands, and 1.3 million gallons (4.9 million liters) of styrene to Hamburg, Germany. Fortunately the impact caused the Liberian-flagged tanker just some minor damage and no leaking, said Michael Wilson, president of ship management company Laurin Maritime (America) Inc. in Houston. Styrene, a colorless, sweet-smelling liquid, is used to make plastics and rubber, according to the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry.

The two vessels crashed at about 1:30 a.m. CDT (0630 GMT) upriver from the Crescent City Connection. Authorities closed the river at about 3:30 a.m. (0830 GMT) after reports of a strong odor of diesel coming from the river.

The tanker owned by Whitefin Shipping Co. Ltd. of Gibraltar had its full crew of 22 men aboard. Fortunately, nobody was injured in the collision. The Coast Guard was checking for pollution and investigating the accident.