Gulf oil spill: New spill in Gulf area after barge crashes into abandoned oil well

An abandoned oil well is leaking into a Louisiana bay about 35 miles south of New Orleans after a barge crashed into the well head early Tuesday, the U.S. Coast Guard said.

A 1-mile-long sheen of oil from the new spill has been detected in the northwest corner of Barataria Bay, a delicate wetland area crisscrossed by a network of canals cut over the years by oil and gas companies.

“The pipeline well head is discharging a mist of orange and brown oil about 100 feet in the air,” Gov. Bobby Jindal said. He added that the Coast Guard was sending response teams to the site.

The collision near Bayou St. Denis occurred at about 1 a.m. when a dredge barge pulled by a tug vessel hit the orphaned well, owned by Houston-based Cedyco Corp.

Another company has been hired to plug the well and boom was being laid to absorb the spill. A Coast Guard spokeswoman said there were no immediate reports of oiled wildlife.

-- Rong-Gong Lin II in Kenner, La.

Photo: A mist of orange and brown oil spew out of an abandoned oil well in Barataria Bay in Louisiana after a dredge barge collided with an abandoned oil well early Tuesday. Credit: U.S. Coast Guard / Petty Officer 2nd Class Wayne Alleyene

Comments

[The Other Jesus (hay-zoose)]

"What if we are dealing with the wrath of God?" Hmmm, let's see now - some all-powerful unknown entity decides to have a barge crash into an abandoned oil well and foul the local ocean just to show how seriously teed off he/she/it is with ... who knows what? Your comments are the kind that have rational people laughing at religion of any flavor. You do yourself and your particular brand a disservice with this nonsense.

[Michael Guy]

And this is an industry "so sure" of its "safe technology"?! Then factor in the seemingly increasing 'human error' quotient and we have an ever growing recipe for untold disaster...And ALWAYS the water resources and wildlife PAY the first price!...but it will trickle down and be on our 'bill' very soon!

[Rev. Daniel W. Blair]

This will continue. As we enter one of the most aggressive hurricane seasons on record, I cannot even imagine what a hurricane would do with oil in the Gulf of Mexico. Dealing with oil on the beach is one thing, but what if we had to deal with it in our streets, in our businesses, in our homes? What if we had to rescue humans covered in oil? What if this is no longer isolated to just the Gulf Coast but found its way up the great rivers to our inner cities? Now imagine if you will, the dispersants mixed with oil which could possibly cause untold diseases and catastrophic health hazards of a biblical proportion. It staggers the imagination, or is it prophetic? What if we are dealing with the wrath of God? Please visit my website at http://www.revelation-truth.org Author of Final Warning

[H]

..yeah, I don't think so.

I think when BP stopped up the gusher with a cap, it raised pressure elsewhere, either rupturing the seafloor or rupturing old wells. What this may be is an oil/methane leak caused by this damage.

[Robert NO longer in LA]

And again, only working people pay, and pay and pay, while corporate goons and RICO experts avoid responsibility, by BUYING the US Congress.