Some oil spill events from Thursday, June 3, 2010

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Some oil spill events from Thursday, June 3, 2010

A summary of events on Thursday, June 3, Day 44 of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill that began with the April 20 explosion and fire on the drilling rig Deepwater Horizon, owned by Transocean Ltd. and leased by BP PLC, which is in charge of cleanup and containment. The blast killed 11 workers. Since then, oil has been pouring into the Gulf from a blown-out undersea well.

CUT & CAP

BP sliced off a pipe with giant shears Thursday in the latest bid to curtail the worst oil spill in U.S. history, but the cut was jagged. Placing a cap over the gusher will now be more challenging. BP turned to the shears after a diamond-tipped saw became stuck in the pipe halfway through. The cap will be lowered and sealed over the leak, said Coast Guard Adm. Thad Allen, the government’s point man for the disaster. It won’t be known how much oil BP can siphon to a tanker on the surface until the cap is fitted, but the irregular cut means it won’t fit as snugly as officials hoped. The next chance to stop the flow won’t come until two relief wells meant to plug the reservoir for good are finished in August.

COSTS

The White House says the federal government sent BP a $69 million bill Thursday for costs so far because of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill. Spokesman Robert Gibbs says the bill is the first to be sent to the oil company, which leased the rig that exploded on April 20 and later sank, sending millions of gallons of oil into the Gulf. Gibbs says he isn’t sure how long the company has to pay the bill. The White House has said BP will ultimately be responsible for all costs associated with the spill.

OBAMA

President Barack Obama said Thursday that he was “furious” about the situation in the Gulf of Mexico and that BP hasn’t moved fast enough to respond to the oil spill. The president said in an interview for broadcast on CNN’s “Larry King Live” that BP has felt his anger — although he said “venting and yelling at people” won’t solve the problem. The White House said Obama will return to Louisiana on Friday. Details were still being worked out. A spokesman said Obama will likely meet with governors of the affected states, local business leaders and Coast Guard Adm. Thad Allen, who is overseeing the government’s response.

DRILLING PERMITS

The Minerals Management Service stopped issuing permits for new oil and gas drilling in the Gulf of Mexico, even as an administration spokeswoman denied a formal freeze on drilling in shallow water. Kendra Barkoff said drilling may continue as long as environmental and safety requirements are met. Earlier in the day, a top official in the federal agency that oversees offshore drilling told a company seeking a permit that “until further notice” no new drilling is being allowed in the Gulf, no matter the water depth. A copy of the e-mail was obtained by The Associated Press.

LOOP CURRENT

Computer models show oil leaking from a damaged well in the Gulf of Mexico could wind up on the East Coast and even get carried on currents across the Atlantic Ocean toward Europe. The National Center for Atmospheric Research models showed Thursday that oil could enter the Gulf’s loop current, go around the tip of Florida and as far north as Cape Hatteras, N.C. According to researchers, oil could threaten East Coast beaches by early July, but they cautioned the models were not a forecast. The oil could then head by Bermuda on its way to Europe.

UNPREPARED

BP PLC’s top executive acknowledged the global oil giant was unprepared to fight a catastrophic deepwater oil spill. Chief Executive Tony Hayward told The Financial Times, based in London, it was “an entirely fair criticism” to say the company had not been fully prepared for a deepwater oil leak. Hayward called it “low-probability, high-impact” accident.

SAND BARRIERS

The Coast Guard’s Allen directed BP to pay for five more sand barrier projects in Louisiana. BP said Thursday the project will cost it about $360 million, on top of about $990 million it had spent as of its latest expense update Tuesday.

ALABAMA

Globs of oil are washing into Mobile Bay and onto the white-sand beach at Fort Morgan, a Civil War fort. The coin-size globs could be seen Thursday in the water rolling along the bay’s bottom. Soft, brown goo glistened in the sun on the sand near the fort. A hired cleanup crew waited nearby to begin work while two volunteers cleaned up the mess.

FLORIDA

Florida Gov. Charlie Crist said oil from the vast Gulf spill was within four miles of the Panhandle coast. Officials say it’s inevitable that oil will eventually wash up onshore in Florida. The state replaced an advertising campaign proclaiming the “coast is clear” with one saying that most of Florida’s 825 miles of beaches are unaffected.

COAST

Forced to perform a painful kind of environmental triage, emergency workers concentrated on protecting marshes and inlets from the approaching BP oil slick Thursday. That left the Gulf Coast’s white-sand beaches largely undefended. The decision to sacrifice parts of the shoreline was made weeks ago by state and Coast Guard officials. It came under fire Thursday from Alabama’s governor.

BEACH ADVICE

Oil has now washed up on the beaches of three Gulf states. How dangerous is it? Not very, experts say. People should of course stay away from oil on the beach or in the water, but swallowing a little oil-tainted water or getting slimed by a tarball is not considered grounds for a trip to the emergency room, health officials say.