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Vessels prepare to leave oil rig area
NEW ORLEANS, Many vessels in the area of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill are "preparing to move out of harm's way" as Tropical Storm Bonnie approaches, officials said Thursday.
The National Hurricane Center in Miami said Thursday evening a tropical depression has grown to become a tropical storm. National Incident Commander Thad Allen announced the decision to have vessels leave the vicinity.
"Due to the risk that Tropical Storm Bonnie poses to the safety of the nearly 2,000 people responding to the BP oil spill at the well site, many of the vessels and rigs will be preparing to move out of harm's way beginning tonight," Allen said. "This includes the rig drilling the relief well that will ultimately kill the well, as well as other vessels needed for containment. Some of the vessels may be able to remain on site, but we will err on the side of safety."
Allen said earlier in the day the damaged well would remain capped if ships have to leave the area. He told reporters in Mobile, Ala., the decision to leave the well capped was made on the recommendation of U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu, The New York Times reported.
The implication of such a decision is that government and BP officials think there is not much risk the well's condition would worsen if it is kept under pressure by the cap, the newspaper said. Allen, a retired Coast Guard admiral, said while Bonnie "is not a hurricane, it's a storm that will have some significant impacts."
Allen acknowledged the decision to have vessels leave the area may mean a delay of several days in the effort to kill the well but he said "the safety of the individuals at the well site is our highest concern."
Coast Guard Rear Adm. Paul Zukunft, the on-scene coordinator for spill response, said boats and booms were being moved to high ground. He said the expected bad weather would mean a break in efforts to clean up coastal areas.
The White House announced Thursday President Barack Obama and his family plan to spend the weekend on the Gulf Coast. The president was criticized for a recent weekend break in Bar Harbor, Maine.
At 8 p.m. EDT, forecasters said Bonnie, with top sustained winds of 40 mph, was about 165 miles southeast of Nassau, Bahamas, and about 385 miles east-southeast of Key West, Fla. The storm was moving northwestward at 14 mph and was expected to turn toward the west-northwest and pick up forward speed by the weekend.
Allen said a bad storm could force the suspension of work for as long as two weeks.
BP said Wednesday work on a relief well would not resume until after the storm. Once the company resumes installing steel casing pipe, that task would take about two days followed by another week of drilling.
A tropical storm warning was in effect Thursday afternoon for South Florida, the Florida Keys and parts of the Bahamas.
NEW ORLEANS, Many vessels in the area of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill are "preparing to move out of harm's way" as Tropical Storm Bonnie approaches, officials said Thursday.
The National Hurricane Center in Miami said Thursday evening a tropical depression has grown to become a tropical storm. National Incident Commander Thad Allen announced the decision to have vessels leave the vicinity.
"Due to the risk that Tropical Storm Bonnie poses to the safety of the nearly 2,000 people responding to the BP oil spill at the well site, many of the vessels and rigs will be preparing to move out of harm's way beginning tonight," Allen said. "This includes the rig drilling the relief well that will ultimately kill the well, as well as other vessels needed for containment. Some of the vessels may be able to remain on site, but we will err on the side of safety."
Allen said earlier in the day the damaged well would remain capped if ships have to leave the area. He told reporters in Mobile, Ala., the decision to leave the well capped was made on the recommendation of U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu, The New York Times reported.
The implication of such a decision is that government and BP officials think there is not much risk the well's condition would worsen if it is kept under pressure by the cap, the newspaper said. Allen, a retired Coast Guard admiral, said while Bonnie "is not a hurricane, it's a storm that will have some significant impacts."
Allen acknowledged the decision to have vessels leave the area may mean a delay of several days in the effort to kill the well but he said "the safety of the individuals at the well site is our highest concern."
Coast Guard Rear Adm. Paul Zukunft, the on-scene coordinator for spill response, said boats and booms were being moved to high ground. He said the expected bad weather would mean a break in efforts to clean up coastal areas.
The White House announced Thursday President Barack Obama and his family plan to spend the weekend on the Gulf Coast. The president was criticized for a recent weekend break in Bar Harbor, Maine.
At 8 p.m. EDT, forecasters said Bonnie, with top sustained winds of 40 mph, was about 165 miles southeast of Nassau, Bahamas, and about 385 miles east-southeast of Key West, Fla. The storm was moving northwestward at 14 mph and was expected to turn toward the west-northwest and pick up forward speed by the weekend.
Allen said a bad storm could force the suspension of work for as long as two weeks.
BP said Wednesday work on a relief well would not resume until after the storm. Once the company resumes installing steel casing pipe, that task would take about two days followed by another week of drilling.
A tropical storm warning was in effect Thursday afternoon for South Florida, the Florida Keys and parts of the Bahamas.
