Dying, dead marine wildlife paint dark, morbid picture of Gulf Coast following oil spill

BY Matthew Lysiak In Grand Isle, La. and Helen Kennedy

Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/2010/06/02/2010-06-02_the_hidden_death_in_the_gulf.html#ixzz0psBmbPtF

Deepwater Horizon sinks in Gulf of Mexico

 

 

23/4/2010

 

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THE Deepwater Horizon semi-submersible rig, which caught fire after an explosion on 20 April 2010, has sunk.   The cause of the explosion is still unknown and 11 of the 126 rig workers are still missing, with 17 in hospital. The US Coast Guard has so far searched over 6000 km2 of ocean for the missing, and was expected to resume its efforts today with a helicopter, seaplane and two boats, although hopes are fading. Relatives of the missing told the newswire Associated Press that they had been told they were unlikely to have survived.   Transocean, the owner and operator of Deepwater Horizon, under licence to BP, said an emergency response team on board the rig was unable to stem the oil flow from the rig before it sank, although according to the Associated Press, US Coast Guard rear admiral Mary Landry has said that no oil appears to be leaking from the well head, although there is a large oil slick.   BP is monitoring the well and subsea blow-out preventer with remotely operated vehicles, and has deployed 32 oil spill clean-up vessels to the area, with a skimming capacity of 171,000 bbl/d. It also has on standby four aircraft with almost 400,000 l of oil dispersants. BP says that a plan is also in place to drill a relief well using a nearby drilling rig.   “We are determined to do everything in our power to contain this oil spill and resolve the situation as rapidly, safely and effectively as possible. We have assembled and are now deploying world-class facilities, resources and expertise, and can call on more if needed. There should be no doubt of our resolve to limit the escape of oil and protect the marine and coastal environments from its effects,” says BP group chief executive Tony Hayward.

THE Deepwater Horizon semi-submersible rig, which caught fire after an explosion on 20 April 2010, has sunk.   The cause of the explosion is still unknown and 11 of the 126 rig workers are still missing, with 17 in hospital. The US Coast Guard has so far searched over 6000 km2 of ocean for the missing, and was expected to resume its efforts today with a helicopter, seaplane and two boats, although hopes are fading. Relatives of the missing told the newswire Associated Press that they had been told they were unlikely to have survived.   Transocean, the owner and operator of Deepwater Horizon, under licence to BP, said an emergency response team on board the rig was unable to stem the oil flow from the rig before it sank, although according to the Associated Press, US Coast Guard rear admiral Mary Landry has said that no oil appears to be leaking from the well head, although there is a large oil slick.   BP is monitoring the well and subsea blow-out preventer with remotely operated vehicles, and has deployed 32 oil spill clean-up vessels to the area, with a skimming capacity of 171,000 bbl/d. It also has on standby four aircraft with almost 400,000 l of oil dispersants. BP says that a plan is also in place to drill a relief well using a nearby drilling rig.   “We are determined to do everything in our power to contain this oil spill and resolve the situation as rapidly, safely and effectively as possible. We have assembled and are now deploying world-class facilities, resources and expertise, and can call on more if needed. There should be no doubt of our resolve to limit the escape of oil and protect the marine and coastal environments from its effects,” says BP group chief executive Tony Hayward.       http://www.tcetoday.com/tcetoday/NewsDetail.aspx?nid=12718