Coast Guard: More than 2M gallons of oil-water mix collected since Gulf crude spill

More than 2M gallons of oil-water mix collected

PORT FOURCHON, La. — The Coast Guard says about 2.1 million gallons of an oil-water mix has been collected since a spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

BP PLC chief operating officer Doug Suttles has said the mix collected is about 10 percent oil and the rest water.

The Coast Guard said Saturday that nearly 190 vessels are involved in the cleanup efforts. More than 160 miles of boom to contain the oil has been put out and crews have used nearly 275,000 gallons of chemicals to break up the oil on the water’s surface.

More than 4,500 people are responding and another 2,500 volunteers have been trained to help.

An oil rig exploded 50 miles of the Louisiana coast April 20 and sank two days later. Oil has been spewing at about 200,000 gallons a day.