Lower Mississippi RIVERKEEPER

Presently the leaking oil is flowing through the failed blowout preventer and a long section of riser pipe that remained attached to the well head after the Deepwater Horizon sank. The kinks and bends in the riser pipe are restricting the flow of oil from the well. However, there is concern that abrasive sand particles are mixing with the flowing oil and acting like a "sand blaster" and eroding the interior of the pipe.

A source close to LEAN reported that employees of a contractor working on the clean up were told to be prepared to move out of the Venice area in the event that the well head were eroded to the point of failure by sand in the oil.

The reason given for being prepared to move from the area was the concern that if unprecedented volumes of oil were to be released into the Gulf of Mexico that air quality could become degraded enough to require an evacuation of people from the coastal areas.

In addition, the Alabama Press-Register released articles earlier today outlining just such a scenario with a leaked NOAA emergency response document as evidence.

From the Unified Command:

Forecast is for increasing SE winds today and then strong, persistent SE winds of 15-25 kts from tonight through saturday night. These winds will continue to bring the oil towards the shoreline. Satellite imagery from this morning indicates the western edge of the oil is 7-8 miles from the delta, but oil was observed during overflights yesterday afternoon several miles off SE pass in the Mississippi River Convergence - This could be the leading edge of the tarballs becoming concentrated in this region. Shoreline impacts could hence occur as early as this morning, if the onshore winds are strong enough for the oil to escape the convergence zone, Shoreline impacts become increasingly likely later in the day and into Friday with the strengthening onshore winds. Morning overflight observations will be critical in assessing the strength of the convergence zone.

Location of the oil sheen at 1:30 p.m. on 4/28/2010

According to the EPA controlled burns of the oil spilled into the Gulf of Mexico from the Deepwater Horizon disaster were suspended today due to adverse weather conditions.

First we would like to express our condolences to the families who have lost loved ones on the rig and to the injured; our thoughts and prayers are with you.

We at LEAN and Lower Mississippi Riverkeeper are bracing ourselves for what appears to be developing into an ecological tragedy.

Graphic showing location of oil slick on April 27, 2010

As of 10:40 a.m. the oil slick was just 21 miles South East of the mouth of the Mississippi River. Government agencies have been requesting oil booms to deploy around Delta National Wildlife Refuge (which already experienced a spill of 18,000 gallons of crude oil earlier this month). Delta National Wildlife Refuge is in the extreme south-eastern end of the Mississippi River Delta.

NASA satellite photo of the oil slick on April 25

Efforts to stop the flow using the blowout preventer have not been successful and oil continues to leak from at least two locations on the well pipe.