[blackkitty]

Burning oil rig sinks in Gulf of Mexico

(CNN) -- An oil rig that was burning in the Gulf of Mexico for more than a day after an explosion has sunk, the U.S. Coast Guard said Thursday.

Lt. Cmdr. Cheri Ben-Iesau of the Coast Guard announced this latest development as an aerial search resumed for 11 workers who have been missing since the explosion on the rig Tuesday night off the Louisiana coast.

Crude oil was leaking from the rig at the rate of about 8,000 barrels per day, Coast Guard Petty Officer Ashley Butler said. The Coast Guard also is preparing for possible leaks of up to 700,000 gallons of diesel fuel but can do little to protect the environment until the fire is out, Butler said. More..

 

[weaselrunner]

there go gas prices again

 

[kev]

Just in time to drive gas prices up even more - especially for the summer months.

 

[blackkitty]

A 1-by-5-mile sheen of crude oil mix has spread across the Gulf of Mexico's surface around the area where an oil rig exploded and sank, a Coast Guard lieutenant said Thursday.

"This is a rainbow sheen with a dark center," Coast Guard Rear Adm. Mary Landry told reporters Thursday afternoon.

Officials do not know whether oil or fuel are leaking form the sunken Deepwater Horizon rig and the well below, but BP Vice President David Rainey said "it certainly has the potential to be a major spill." BP PLC operates the license on which the rig was drilling.

Wonder how big the slick is gonna get?

 

[desertprovender]

About the size of Ohio and visible from space.

 

[Pangea]

This shouldn't effect gas prices too much IMHO. There are about 150 other rigs out there producing the same amount of oil. Seafood prices will be effected due to the 1/3 share of the market that is provided from that area. Tourism will be -0- for the next 2-5 years as well. This time next year you will see Gulf Shores, Navarre Beach, and P'cola condos for pennies on the dollar.