Florida Deepwater Horizon Response for Aug. 6
Under the leadership of Governor Charlie Crist, the State Emergency Response Team and the Florida Department of Environmental Protection are actively coordinating and responding to the Deepwater Horizon incident.
Message of the day: State EOC’s Final Daily Media Advisory
The State Emergency Operations Centers transitioned to a Level Two – partial activation on August 5, 2010 in response to the Deepwater Horizon incident in the Gulf of Mexico. State emergency management officials will continue to coordinate with federal, state and local partners to ensure that any further impacts to Florida’s coastline are quickly responded to and cleaned up, while minimizing staff and resources as necessary.
This will be the final media update, unless conditions warrant, from the ESF-14 Public Information Office, however, staff will continue to be available to answer any media questions at (850) 921-0217 or through email at ESF14@em.myflorida.com.
Current Situation
The State Emergency Operations Center is activated at Level 2 – partial activation.
The State continues to focus on mitigating impacts to Florida’s shoreline.
On August 5, BP completed cementing operations on the Deepwater Horizon well as part of the static kill procedure. Monitoring of the well is underway in order to confirm the effectiveness of the procedure. BP continues the ongoing relief well operations. Depending upon weather conditions, mid-August is the current estimate of the most likely date by which the first relief well will intercept the well. Learn More.
No new oil has been discharged from the Deepwater Horizon well since July 15.
State reconnaissance teams operating by air, land and sea continue to identify potential impacts and are actively coordinating with cleanup teams. View the latest reconnaissance reports.
Although sporadic sightings of tar balls may continue, Florida’s shoreline is not expected to receive additional impacts over the next 72 hours.
The remnants of Colin regained tropical storm intensity Thursday evening. As of 8 a.m. EDT Friday, Tropical Storm Colin was located about 400 miles south of Bermuda, or about 800 miles east of Jupiter Inlet, with maximum sustained winds near 45mph. Tropical Storm Colin is forecast to continue moving north and northeast away from the U.S. coastline. A tropical wave in the central Atlantic Ocean is getting better organized and there is a 40 percent chance of formation into a tropical cyclone within the next day or two.
Oil Impact Notices are posted for all Escambia County and Walton County Gulf beaches, as well as designated beaches in Okaloosa County. Signs may remain in place until local authorities determine that beaches are no longer impacted by the oil spill. Learn more.
The coastal state waters previously closed to the harvest of saltwater fish were reopened on July 31. The area will remain closed to the harvest of shrimp and crabs pending additional testing. Learn more.
Learn More About Florida’s Response:
Visit www.deepwaterhorizonflorida.com to learn more about Florida’s response to the Deepwater Horizon incident, sign up for daily updates, view tips for businesses and consumers, find a listing of Unified Command, BP and Florida phone numbers, and more.
The Oil Spill Information Line is available at 1-888-337-3569 from 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. seven days a week. Persons with disabilities can contact 1-800-955-8771 (TDD) or 1-800-955-8770 (voice).