Fears that a huge tropical storm in the Caribbean,could threaten oil clean-up operations in the Gulf of Mexico has been played down by the US coast guard.
Tropical Storm Alex, which developed yesterday, has sustained winds of 65 km/h and was located about 400 km east southeast of Chetumal, Mexico. It is moving west-northwest at 13 km/h on a path that was expected to take it toward Belize and over the Yucatan Peninsula during the weekend and then into the Gulf of Mexico.
Today, the top US oil spill official said the storm does not currently threaten oil siphoning efforts at BP’s blown-out well.
"We understand it's moving westerly at this time and does not threaten the site," US coast guard dmiral Thad Allen told reporters on a conference call.
However, BP could be forced to suspend containment efforts if the storm causes gale-force winds at the site off Louisiana, he said. In the Gulf, BP said its oil-capture systems collected or burned off 23,725 barrels of oil on Thursday.
US coast guard admiral Thad Allen, who oversees the federal relief effort, said BP was on track to nearly double its oil collection capacity next week - weather cooperating.
The disaster is taking a mounting toll on fishing and tourist industries in the Gulf and threatens to wreak havoc on a grand scale on coastal ecosystems and wildlife.
Share losses for BP since the spill began on April 20th stand at around $100 billion, more than halving its market value prior to the disaster, as investors fret about the potential costs which include but are not limited to a $20 billion compensation fund it set up under intense political pressure.
BP has added $5 billion to its available credit to ensure it has enough money to meet the cost of the spill, according to the Wall Street Journal.