United States officials have announced a ban on fishing for at least ten days in waters off Louisiana spanning to parts of the Florida panhandle as the oil slick from a leak spreads across the Gulf of Mexico. Rough weather conditions are complicating crews’ efforts to contain the oil slick.
State of Florida Governor Charlie Crist declared on Friday a state of emergency in coastal counties because of the threat from the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.
Oil started washing ashore on the US Gulf Coast from a leaking offshore well, the US Coast Guard reported. Up to 5,000 barrels of oil a day are thought to be spilling into the water after last week's explosion on a BP-operated rig (NYSE:BP), which then sank.
Efforts were under way Sunday to contain and stop oil leaking from a BP well after a rig explosion in the Gulf of Mexico, the US Coast Guard said. Officials found oil was leaking Saturday from the well.
An oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico that caught fire after an explosion on Tuesday night has now sunk, the US Coast Guard has said. A search is continuing for 11 missing workers after the blast at the Deepwater Horizon rig. The other workers on the rig, off Louisiana, were evacuated to the US.