600 Mile Ring of Fire to Solve Massive Louisiana Oil Slick
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US Coast Guard are considering burning off the huge oil slick in the Gulf of Mexico to prevent oil seeping into the Louisiana coast.
Drastic measures are being considered to deal with the huge 600 mile oil slick in the Gulf of Mexico, with US authorities judging whether deliberately setting the massive slick on fire would solve the problem.
The Deepwater Horizon platform exploded eight days ago, killing 11 workers in the process. The destroyed rig is unleashing 42,000 gallons of oil a day into the Gulf of Mexico. As the oil gushes into the Gulf, the slick has moved closer inland, and is now just 21 miles from the Louisiana coast.
Options are growing thin, and the US Coast Guard are investigating the possibility of burning off the oil, to create an immense fire ring approximately 190 miles wide.
Meanwhile, BP are striving to seal off the leak with an enormous 450 tonne dome to contain the disaster and stop more oil escaping into the Mexican Gulf. In theory, the dome should funnel the oil into surface tankers, but such a device has never been used in waters this deep.
Prentice Danner, the spokesman for the US Coast Guard told The Times: “This is the first time this has even been done. This idea didn’t exist until now. It has never been fabricated before.” Over 1,000 people including world oil experts are now committed to bringing a swift resolution to the problem.
Should the combined taskforce be unable to seal the well, the US could be looking at the most significant oil disaster in history, eclipsing even the 1989 Exxon Valdez oil tank disaster.
