A local fisherman inspects a dead California gray whale that was killed by the Exxon Valdez oil spill, on the northern shore of Latoucha Island, Alaska, on 9 April 1989. Photo: John Gaps III / AP Photo
A local fisherman inspects a dead California gray whale that was killed by the Exxon Valdez oil spill, on the northern shore of Latoucha Island, Alaska, on 9 April 1989. Photo: John Gaps III / AP Photo

By Johnny Simon
22 March 2019

(Quartz) – On 24 March 1989 the Exxon Valdez tanker ran aground and spilled nearly 11 million gallons of oil in Alaska’s Prince William Sound.

It was the worst oil spill in US history until 2010, when the Deepwater Horizon disaster pumped nearly 20 times that amount into the Gulf of Mexico.

Thirty years later, the pictures of the aftermath and cleanup efforts in Alaska remain iconic images for environmental activists, starkly depicting the blunt force of industry running headfirst into a delicately balanced natural setting. [more]

30 years later, photos from the Exxon Valdez spill remain haunting