Tropical Storm Bonnie could hit site of BP oil spill
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Friday, July 23, 2010
BP workers in the Gulf of Mexico have stopped drilling a relief well and are preparing to leave the oil spill site as Tropical Storm Bonnie gathers pace.
Bonnie is the second named storm of the 2010 Atlantic hurricane
season, with wind speeds of 40mph (65km/h), the US National Hurricane
Center says.
The government's incident commander Adm Thad Allen said the well would remain capped if ships evacuated the Gulf.
Work on the relief well could be suspended for up to two weeks.
Louisiana
Governor Bobby Jindal has declared a state of emergency. He said he
expected leaders of low-lying coastal parishes to tell people to leave
as early as Friday morning.
Because of the slow-moving vessels in use at the spill site, evacuation plans are already under way.
A "packer" - a plug used during storms - has been placed in the relief well to stabilise it in case crews leave the site.
Meanwhile,
Adm Allen said increasing confidence in the security of a new cap
placed on the leaking well had convinced scientists it would be safe to
leave the capped well unmonitored for several days.
If the cap was reopened, it would allow oil to gush out into the sea from the well.
Adm Allen will decide on Thursday evening whether the vessels at the site will be evacuated.
The
approaching storm has already caused flooding in Haiti, Puerto Rico and
the Dominican Republic, according to the National Hurricane Center in
Miami, and is moving north-west over the Bahamas.
Waves in the Gulf of Mexico had reached up to 5ft (1.5m) on Thursday, rocking boats and crews awaiting orders to evacuate.
Commander
Terri Jordan told the crew of the Coast Guard Cutter Decisive on
Thursday morning that barges and skimmers were likely to be sent back
to the shore.
Forecasters say Tropical Storm Bonnie could reach the Gulf of Mexico as early as Saturday.
Shell Oil has already begun to evacuate employees stationed out in the Gulf.