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Today in Labor History March 24, 1989: The Exxon Valdez oil tanker ran aground in Prince William Sound, Alaska, dumping 240,000 barrels of crude oil. It was the largest oil spill in U.S. history until the Deepwater Horizon spill, in 2010. A major cause for the tanker’s collision was an overworked and under-rested crew, which the National Transportation Safety Board determined was a widespread practice. Thousands of people who participated in the cleanup efforts developed liver, kidney, lung, nervous system, and blood disorders due to 2-butoxyethanol and other agents that were used. An estimated 250,000 sea birds; 2,800 sea otters; 300 harbor seals, 247 bald eagles; 22 orcas; and unknown numbers of fish were killed by the spill. A study by the National Marine Fisheries Service, NOAA found that 90 tons of oil remained on beaches in Prince William Sound in 2001. The devastation to the local fisheries caused the bankruptcy of the Chugach Alaska Corporation, an Alaska Native Corporation.