The crane, which was mounted on a barge, fell about 2pm. Its body and cab remained on the barge and part of the boom came to rest on a pile.
There was understood to be 200 litres of diesel and 24 litres of engine oil in the crane and about 1600 litres of hydraulic oil in the power pack, Environment Southland communications manager Michelle Poole said last night.
Milford Development Authority staff set out booms around the barge in case oil leaked into the water. The operation was later upgraded to a regional-scale tier 2 response, directed by Environment Southland staff, she said.
No oil had spilled into the water so far, she said.
Two Environment Southland staff and two Bluff Port staff trained in oil spill response were sent to Milford Sound with more booms, skimmers and absorbent pads. They were expected to arrive at 10pm.
An assessment would be made at dawn today. Staff could not remove the fuel until an occupational safety and health inspector had checked the site, Ms Poole said.
