CALIFORNIA IN BRIEF : ORANGE COUNTY : Final Effort to Clean Coast of Oil Begins

As the tanker American Trader sailed into San Francisco Bay for repairs, cleanup crews marshaled their forces for a final effort that could take weeks to remove the remnants of a 394,000-gallon oil spill that has fouled Orange County’s coast for two weeks. Although it will be awhile before the last oily residues are picked up, cleanup officials say miles of coast between Newport Beach and Huntington Beach could be reopened to the public within several days. “I think it’s gone very well so far, but there is still more work to do,” said U.S. Coast Guard Capt. James C. Card, who is supervising the cleanup. “Everyone is going to see this through.” Meanwhile, the oil tanker--with a concrete patch over the two holes in its hull--sailed under Coast Guard escort into San Francisco Bay, where it will be dry-docked for repairs at Southwest Marine Inc., a shipyard at Pier 70.