Oil spill update
June 10, 2010

From the Alabama Convention Bureau

Gulf Oil Spill Update, Thursday, June 10, 2010, 6:30 a.m.

Like everyone along the Gulf Coast, the CVB is monitoring the clean-up of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill and relying on official updates from the Unified Command response team and local emergency management officials for information. We will continue to post confirmed updates on this page as they become available.

We are continuing to see scattered oil impacts, to varying degrees, across the island. Some stretches of beach are seeing little sign of oil, while others are experiencing greater amounts. Local officials are urging more rapid response times and will continue to be diligent in their efforts to keep our beaches as clean and safe as possible. Teams are deployed at sites along the coast to deal with local effects.
The cities of Gulf Shores & Orange Beach have persuaded BP to purchase ten additional beach raking machines to facilitate faster and more effective clean up. The mechanical beach rakes are capable of sifting even very small contaminates from the sand efficiently and safely. Two machines are currently cleaning the beaches daily and the additional machines are due to arrive within the week.
The Alabama Department of Public Health has expanded the swimming advisory. In addition to gulf waters off Gulf Shores, Orange Beach and Fort Morgan, individuals are discouraged from swimming in bay waters immediately adjacent to Fort Morgan, in Bayou St. John, Terry Cove, Cotton Bayou or Old River. The beaches are OPEN and visitors are still welcome to sunbathe and walk the beach, but we strongly suggest they swim in a pool or enjoy our many off-beach activities. To read advisory information and frequently asked questions, visit the Alabama Department of Public Health website.
If you have questions about beach conditions at a specific property location, please contact your rental management agent for accurate and up-to-date information.
Visitors are reminded not to touch oil in any form and to leave it for clean-up crews. To report sightings of oil or tarballs on the beach, please call 866-448-5816 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 866-448-5816 end_of_the_skype_highlighting. To report oil impacts to wildlife, contact 866-557-1401 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 866-557-1401 end_of_the_skype_highlighting.
According to NOAA, tarballs DO NOT pose a health risk to the average person. However, beachgoers are advised not to pick them up or bury them and asked to report any sightings. To read NOAA’s information about tarballs, click here.
We are still monitoring the NOAA map for changing conditions. At this point, we do not know what extent of impact we will receive and just have to wait and be prepared.
NOAA's current closed fishing area includes federal waters eastward to Panama City, Florida. The Alabama Department of Conservation & Natural Resources has closed state gulf waters and some inshore waters. To view a map of the closed area, go to http://sero.nmfs.noaa.gov/.
The pier at Gulf State Park is closed for fishing. However, the pier is still open to sightseers.
Oil has been discovered reaching into Perdido Pass, but skimming vessels are at work to contain and remove it. A more effective long-term system of piping that will funnel oil away from the pass into a collection area is underway and will be in place soon.
Perdido Pass is open. Ocean boom is in place at the pass and boaters are asked to be careful navigating through the pass. Ono Island has closed its canals and harbor. Ono Island is privately owned and the decision was made by their private neighborhood association, not any government agency.
We will continue to monitor the situation and post information pertinent to our local area as it becomes available.
For detailed information about the entire incident, visit the NOAA (http://response.restoration.noaa.gov/) or Deepwater Horizon (www.deepwaterhorizonresponse.com) response sites.

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2008
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