A “mile-long” oil slick was spotted by a Coast Guard helicopter on Sunday, June 18 in Buzzards Bay, according to Coast Guard officials. 

The Marion and Mattapoisett Fire Departments both responded to the area of Cleveland Ledge at approximately 10:30 a.m., according to a Facebook post by the Marion Fire Department. 

“The oil is expected to dissipate and shouldn’t have an impact on the shore line,” read the post. 

In Mattapoisett, fire fighters and harbormasters readied their boats and took off from the docks. 

One Mattapoisett fire fighter on the scene said “it’s our typical kind of response to get a boat out there and see what’s going on.”

Oil spills “aren’t too common, fortunately,” said the fire fighter. “It can be indicative of a couple things. Hopefully it’s just fuel or oil that leaked out of a vessel. Worst case scenario, it could be a vessel that sunk so we prepare for the one percent.”

No cause for the spill has been determined, according to Coast Guard officials.