Massive oil spill sends crude onto Southern California beaches
ByBob D'Angelo, Cox Media Group National Content Desk
Oil leak: A seagull flies over oil washed up by the coast in Huntington Beach, California, on Sunday. (Ringo H.W. Chiu/Associated Press )
ByBob D'Angelo, Cox Media Group National Content Desk
HUNTINGTON BEACH, Calif. — A massive oil spill off the Southern California coast Sunday morning caused the closure of beaches, the cancellation of an airshow and concerns about wildlife as crews rushed to contain the damage.
The spill is believed to have originated Saturday from a broken pipeline about three miles off the coast of Huntington Beach in Orange County, the Los Angeles Times reported. The pipeline was connected to an offshore platform and so far has dumped more than 126,000 gallons of crude oil into the Pacific Ocean, the newspaper reported.
By Sunday morning, oil had washed ashore on Huntington Beach, along with dead fish and birds, according to the Times. KTLA reported that Huntington Beach contains Talbert Marsh, which is home to about 90 species of birds, according to the Huntington Beach Wetlands Conservancy.
“We classify this as a major spill, and it is a high priority to us to mitigate any environmental concerns,” Jennifer Carey, a Huntington Beach city spokesperson, told the Times. “It’s all hands on deck.”
Officials on Sunday said they have measured a 5.8-mile oil plume running from the Huntington Beach Pier to Newport Beach, KTLA reported. The slick was reported to be “approximately 13 square miles in size,” the television station reported.
“In a year that has been filled with incredibly challenging issues this oil spill constitutes one of the most devastating situations that our community has dealt with in decades,” Huntington Beach Mayor Kim Carr said at a news conference. “Rest assured that the team in Huntington Beach mobilized quickly, and we are proactively responding. We are doing everything in our power to protect the health and safety of our residents, our visitors and our natural habitats.”
The leak forced organizers to cancel the third day of the Pacific Airshow, according to KCBS.
The Airshow was canceled. That’s unfortunate,” Orange County Supervisor Katrina Foley told the television station. “I was planning to go and I am disappointed just like all the 1.5 million other people that were planning to go today but we just can’t have the Airshow going on, and I know the organizers were very cooperative. They know that it is hard to do the cleanup with all the people.”
Crews raced Sunday morning to contain the damage from a major oil spill off the Orange County coast that left crude spoiling beaches, killing fish and birds and threatening local wetlands.
Although the beaches were closed, residents still ventured out onto the sand Sunday to observe the damage.
“It’s terrible,” Jon Ely, 58, of Huntington Beach, told the Times. “This stuff is not going to come up. It’s goo, and it’s thick.”
“There’s tar everywhere,” Ben Smith, a biologist and environmental consultant for Orange County, told the newspaper. “You think by now we would have figured out how to keep this kind of thing from happening, but I guess not.
“If the birds get into this tar it’s going to stick to their feathers and it’s going to be a problem for them,” Smith added. “It contaminated the water — it’s bad for the wildlife, bad for the water, bad for the people who use the water. It’s really unfortunate.”
Orange County Rep. Michelle Steel sent a letter to President Joe Biden on Sunday requesting a major disaster declaration for Orange County, the Times reported.
“It is imperative that the federal government assist in recovery efforts,” she wrote. “I have serious concerns about the environmental impacts of the spill and applaud the workers who are doing their best to prevent the oil from hitting sensitive wetlands.”
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Southern California oil spill Crews deploy skimmers and floating barriers known as booms to try to stop further incursion into the Wetlands Talbert Marsh in Huntington Beach, Calif., Sunday., Oct. 3, 2021. One of the largest oil spills in recent Southern California history fouled popular beaches and killed wildlife while crews scrambled Sunday to contain the crude before it spread further into protected wetlands. (AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu) (Ringo Chiu/AP)
Southern California oil spill A posted sign warning about water contact may cause illness, is posted by life guards after an oil spill in Huntington Beach, Calif., Sunday, Oct. 3, 2021. Vessels with the Marine Spill Response Corporation (MSRC) vessel, background, an oil spill removal organization (OSRO), deploy floating barriers around the largest oil spills in recent Southern California history fouled popular beaches and killed wildlife while crews scrambled Sunday to contain the crude before it spread further into protected wetlands. The oil created a miles-wide sheen in the ocean and washed ashore in sticky, black globules along with dead birds and fish. (AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu) (Ringo H.W. Chiu/AP)
Southern California oil spill Oil is shown washed up in Huntington Beach, Calif., Sunday, Oct. 3, 2021. One of the largest oil spills in recent Southern California history fouled popular beaches and killed wildlife while crews scrambled Sunday to contain the crude before it spread further into protected wetlands. At least 126,000 gallons (572,807 liters) of oil spilled into the waters off Orange County, according to a statement from the city of Huntington Beach. (AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu) (Ringo H.W. Chiu/AP)
Southern California oil spill A boat with Marine Spill Response Corporation (MSRC), an oil spill removal organization (OSRO), deploys floating barriers known as booms to try to stop further incursion of an oil slick off Huntington Beach, Calif., Sunday, Oct. 3, 2021. A major oil spill off the coast of Southern California fouled popular beaches and killed wildlife while crews scrambled Sunday to contain the crude before it spread further into protected wetlands. (AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu) (Ringo Chiu/AP)
Southern California oil spill Cleanup contractors collect oil in plastic bags trying to stop further oil crude incursion into the Wetlands Talbert Marsh in Huntington Beach, Calif., Sunday, Oct. 3, 2021. One of the largest oil spills in recent Southern California history fouled popular beaches and killed wildlife while crews scrambled Sunday to contain the crude before it spread further into protected wetlands. (AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu) (Ringo H.W. Chiu/AP)
Southern California oil spill Lifeguards close the beach after an oil spill in Huntington Beach, Calif., Sunday, Oct. 3, 2021. The closure stretched from the Huntington Beach Pier nearly 4 miles (6.4 kilometers) south to the Santa Ana River jetty. Yellow caution tape was strung between lifeguard towers to keep people away. (AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu) (Ringo H.W. Chiu/AP)
Southern California oil spill Cleanup contractors deploy skimmers and floating barriers known as booms to try to stop further oil crude incursion into the Wetlands Talbert Marsh in Huntington Beach, Calif., Sunday, Oct. 3, 2021. One of the largest oil spills in recent Southern California history fouled popular beaches and killed wildlife while crews scrambled Sunday to contain the crude before it spread further into protected wetlands. (AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu) (Ringo H.W. Chiu/AP)
Southern California oil spill Patches of an oil spill wash off the beach south of the Pier in Huntington Beach, Calif., Sunday, Oct. 3, 2021. The closure stretched from the Huntington Beach Pier nearly 4 miles (6.4 kilometers) south to the Santa Ana River jetty amid summerlike weather that would have brought beachgoers to the wide strand for volleyball, swimming and surfing. Yellow caution tape was strung between lifeguard towers to keep people away. (AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu) (Ringo H.W. Chiu/AP)
Southern California oil spill Cleanup contractors unload collected oil in plastic bags trying to stop further oil crude incursion into the Wetlands Talbert Marsh in Huntington Beach, Calif., Sunday, Oct. 3, 2021. One of the largest oil spills in recent Southern California history fouled popular beaches and killed wildlife while crews scrambled Sunday to contain the crude before it spread further into protected wetlands. (AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu) (Ringo H.W. Chiu/AP)
Southern California oil spill Cleanup contractors unload collected oil in plastic bags trying to stop further oil crude incursion into the Wetlands Talbert Marsh in Huntington Beach, Calif., Sunday, Oct. 3, 2021. One of the largest oil spills in recent Southern California history fouled popular beaches and killed wildlife while crews scrambled Sunday to contain the crude before it spread further into protected wetlands. (AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu) (Ringo H.W. Chiu/AP)
Southern California oil spill Oil is shown washed up in Huntington Beach, Calif., Sunday, Oct. 3, 2021. One of the largest oil spills in recent Southern California history fouled popular beaches and killed wildlife while crews scrambled Sunday to contain the crude before it spread further into protected wetlands. At least 126,000 gallons (572,807 liters) of oil spilled into the waters off Orange County, according to a statement from the city of Huntington Beach. (AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu) (Ringo H.W. Chiu/AP)
Southern California oil spill Cleanup contractors deploy skimmers and floating barriers known as booms to try to stop further oil crude incursion into the Wetlands Talbert Marsh in Huntington Beach, Calif., Sunday., Oct. 3, 2021. One of the largest oil spills in recent Southern California history fouled popular beaches and killed wildlife while crews scrambled Sunday to contain the crude before it spread further into protected wetlands. (AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu) (Ringo H.W. Chiu/AP)
Southern California oil spill Cleanup contractors unload collected oil in plastic bags trying to stop further oil crude incursion into the Wetlands Talbert Marsh in Huntington Beach, Calif., Sunday, Oct. 3, 2021. One of the largest oil spills in recent Southern California history fouled popular beaches and killed wildlife while crews scrambled Sunday to contain the crude before it spread further into protected wetlands. (AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu) (Ringo H.W. Chiu/AP)
Southern California oil spill Cleanup contractors deploy skimmers and floating barriers known as booms to try to stop further oil crude incursion into the Wetlands Talbert Marsh in Huntington Beach, Calif., Sunday, Oct. 3, 2021. One of the largest oil spills in recent Southern California history fouled popular beaches and killed wildlife while crews scrambled Sunday to contain the crude before it spread further into protected wetlands. (AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu) (Ringo H.W. Chiu/AP)
Southern California oil spill Cleanup contractors deploy skimmers and floating barriers known as booms to try to stop further oil crude incursion into the Wetlands Talbert Marsh in Huntington Beach, Calif., Sunday., Oct. 3, 2021. One of the largest oil spills in recent Southern California history fouled popular beaches and killed wildlife while crews scrambled Sunday to contain the crude before it spread further into protected wetlands. (AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu) (Ringo H.W. Chiu/AP)
Southern California oil spill A broken floating device is trapped in oil washed up in Huntington Beach, Calif., Sunday, Oct. 3, 2021. One of the largest oil spills in recent Southern California history fouled popular beaches and killed wildlife while crews scrambled Sunday to contain the crude before it spread further into protected wetlands. At least 126,000 gallons (572,807 liters) of oil spilled into the waters off Orange County, according to a statement from the city of Huntington Beach. (AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu) (Ringo H.W. Chiu/AP)
Southern California oil spill Oil washed up on Huntington Beach, Calif., on Sunday., Oct. 3, 2021. A major oil spill off the coast of Southern California fouled popular beaches and killed wildlife while crews scrambled Sunday, to contain the crude before it spread further into protected wetlands. (AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu) (Ringo Chiu/AP)
Southern California oil spill Cleanup contractors deploy skimmers and floating barriers known as booms to try to stop further oil crude incursion into the Wetlands Talbert Marsh in Huntington Beach, Calif., Sunday, Oct. 3, 2021. One of the largest oil spills in recent Southern California history fouled popular beaches and killed wildlife while crews scrambled Sunday to contain the crude before it spread further into protected wetlands. (AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu) (Ringo H.W. Chiu/AP)
Southern California oil spill Oil washed up on Huntington Beach, Calif., on Sunday, Oct. 3, 2021. A major oil spill off the coast of Southern California fouled popular beaches and killed wildlife while crews scrambled Sunday to contain the crude before it spread further into protected wetlands. (AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu) (Ringo Chiu/AP)
Southern California oil spill This Oct. 22, 2012, photo provided by the federal Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement, BSEE, shows the platforms Ellen and Elly offshore near Long Beach, Calif., in the BSEE's Pacific Region. Officials said late Saturday, Oct. 2, 2021, that at least 126,000 gallons (572,807 liters) of crude spilled into the waters off Orange County from a pipeline that runs to shore from an oil platform maintained by Beta Operating Company, a subsidiary of Houston-based Amplify. (Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement via AP) (AP)
