On June 4, approximately 5,000 gallons of diesel fuel from the Hopkins Hospital spilled into Inner Harbor, Baltimore. Beginning on East Fayette Street, the spill originated from the hospital’s emergency generators when the tanks were overfilled, resulting in the discharge of diesel into various stormwater drains that ultimately led to the Patapsco River.
The spill was first reported around 11 a.m. before the Baltimore City Fire Department responded to a 911 call regarding the diesel fuel spill at approximately 12:58 p.m. in the Harbor East area. By 2 p.m., the U.S. Coast Guard, along with city and state environmental officials, had mobilized to assess and contain the situation. Initially, Hopkins reported the amount of fuel spilled as 2,000 gallons, but revised the estimate to 5,000 gallons on June 6.
According to Kim Hoppe, Vice President of Public Relations for Johns Hopkins Medicine, the oil spill occurred during a routine fuel delivery when two tanks were accidentally overfilled by a third-party vendor. In response to the spill, the University immediately notified the Maryland Department of Environment (MDE) while promising to work with authorities to adequately regulate the situation.
Liz Vandendriessche, Director of Strategic Communications at Johns Hopkins Medicine, provided the following message to The News-Letter.
“A thorough review of the diesel fuel overflow incident is ongoing, so we do not yet have full information about precisely what happened and all of the contributing factors,” she wrote. “We are continuing to work closely with federal, state, and local government authorities to protect the health and safety of our community, and we remain committed to handling the cost of the cleanup of this incident.”
On June 4, the official MDE account addressed the color of the oil spill at Fells Point on X. According to the account, the distinctly red color came from a dye in the oil.
“Our Emergency Response Team is currently in Fells Point responding to an approx. 100 gallon oil spill of unknown origin,” the MDE account wrote. “The red color is coming from dye in the oil. The @USCG and a private contractor are also assisting with the cleanup.”
In an email to The News-Letter, rising sophomore Rushil Khadilkar shared his perspective on the oil spill as a student researcher at the Johns Hopkins Medical Institution. While he acknowledged the University’s prompt commitment to funding the cleanup, Khadilkar noted that he personally learned about the incident through external sources, rather than through the University’s internal communication. He emphasized that increased transparency and timely updates would help students stay informed and engaged during urgent situations similar to the spill.
“I think that Hopkins did a good job of delivering a relatively quick announcement that it will fund the clean-up of the spill in the harbor,” Khadilkar wrote. “However, as a Hopkins student, I believe that I was not directly informed of the incident and had to look at external sources to discover that the diesel spill was tied to Hopkins. It should be a priority for Hopkins to be entirely transparent with its own community when situations like this occur.”
As of June 8, roads between Lancaster and Point streets — which were initially closed — have reopened for usual operations. Similarly, Harbor Connector operations (including Harbor Connector Route 1 from Maritime Park to Locust Point) have also resumed as of June 9.
Jack Gao, another undergraduate student working at the Johns Hopkins Medical Institution, also reflected on the broader implications of the spill in an email to The News-Letter. While not personally impacted by the incident, Gao expressed concern over its environmental effects and Baltimore’s perception of Hopkins as a respected institution.
“As a student at Hopkins, I know that the Hopkins bubble is something that exists,” he explained. “Clubs and organizations here [try] hard [to connect with and uplift] the Baltimore community. That’s why it’s very unfortunate that the oil spill is linked to a Hopkins facility.”
Gao had visited Fells Point on the evening of June 7, noting that much of the cleanup appeared to be completed by that point.
“I went to [Fells Point] to check it out last Friday. I think it was mostly cleaned up by then and since it [was] at night, I [couldn’t] really see if the red color [was] still there,” he wrote. “I [was] super glad to see a lot of fish right next to the oil spill so maybe they were able to clean it up before it did more damage to the ecosystem.”
Looking ahead, Gao encouraged Hopkins to use this moment as an opportunity to deepen its commitment to environmental accountability while strengthening its ties with the local community.
“Having things like this happen certainly puts a damper on [Hopkins’] relationship [with the community] and undermines [their] trust.” Gao wrote. “However, any environmental change is going to be [long-term], whether it be restoring the harbor’s natural habitats or developing renewable energies. Hopkins should work more closely with neighboring communities and address the concerns they have moving forward.”
Students outside of Baltimore also voiced strong opinions about the oil spill. For example, in an interview with The News-Letter, George Mason University student Madhav Maniraj expressed his disappointment learning about the environmental damage while participating in an internship at Hopkins as a visiting student.
“Hopkins, probably, tried to handle it the best they could. Besides lying at first; I think [...] they did not know how much oil was spilled,” explained Maniraj. “Otherwise, outside of that, Hopkins is taking responsibility. I think they said they’ll pay for it, which is the best they can do.”
