Gulf Oil Spill is interrupting my workouts

[coastie]

Well now that I finally have a few days off, well today & tomorrow :roll: , figured I'd clue you guys in on what is really going on out here. Same rules apply as always, & this is just FYI, not what your opinion is on the matter. That aside, here goes.

Knowing oil spills like I do, especially ones down here, I can't believe this thing is still in the news, other than for the explosion, which from what I've heard (whatever that is worth), is something that they have never seen happen before. This spill could be a lot worse, since the capacity of the well is 166,000 barrels/day. Me, I'd rather deal with 1-5k barrels/day anytime. So ok, here's what's really going on.

The discharge is still active, discharging about 5,000 barrels/day, depending on where you look for your info, it's just an estimate, no science involved. The spill is happening 50 miles offshore. With the climate here, the sun really does wonders for breaking down a nice sweet crude like this. What we are seeing most of down here along the coast is some sheen, some emulsified oil, and lastly, there is some actual oil on the beach at the Chandeleur islands, and in the Mississippi River Delta. Shoreline impact has been minimal.

What have I been doing? I have done time at the ICP in Houma, LA where I was working with BP on shoreline protection for our zone, which is from Grand Isle to the Pearl River on the MS/LA border, & I know my area better than anyone else at my unit Last Wed. I started working at the staging area in Hopedale, LA Here I was a liaison from the CG to help BP with planning there. I was trying to integrate the St. Bernard Parish strategies with our own, not an easy undertaking. Then I had to try & educate some of the local fisherman on the consolidated strategies. These are things that anyone who works in this business knows, but outside of pollution response people are generally ignorant to it. It's a science & an art all at the same time

Then, once we got air support, the BP rep asked me to use my expertise to coordinate & plan overflights to survey what we have done, as well as analyze any impact we might have suffered without our knowledge.

So to end all this, BP is spending about $10-12 million/day & they should keep control of this. They have much deeper pockets than that of the Gov't. BP is doing everything in their power, with our support, to stop the leaks & clean this mess up. The dispersants are not TOXIC, it is basically very much like dawn dish detergent. Between that, & the weather here, most of the oil is breaking down and breaking up.

So, there's the facts from someone involved, & knows what's going on

Oh ya, I finally got to work out tonight for the first time since I can't remember. Weighed myself, & somehow I managed to not gain weight. I guess hi-tempo/stress work does metabolism good.

[67alecto]

Keep on keepin' on, brother.

I'll be going down to Point Clear, AL on the Eastern Shore in June, oil or no oil. Hopefully will be able to crab and swim as usual, otherwise may turn into a volunteer oil cleanup trip.

We usually spend a few days in Gulf Shores, AL, too. I've been watching the local news down there every day, and the city has pretty much given up on trying to protect the beaches and will be focusing on the inlets and lagoons.

[coastie]

Beaches are SOOO much easier to clean than a lagoon, or other type of marshy area.

[titsworth]

Thanks for the update, always nice to hear from the front lines... Sounds hectic!

[jacobmovingfwd]

If there's not much oil, why are my company's grain ships getting messed around over there?

And more importantly, was anything ever definitively determined about the 11 missing?

[coastie]

Oh, there's a lot of oil out there, but a lot of it is breaking up before it gets to shore. The ships are getting oiled b/c they are traveling through it.