Anger is mounting as heavy oil blackens Louisiana's coast and efforts to cap the oil gushing into the Gulf of Mexico runs into more delays.
Initially scheduled to begin today, BP's latest attempt to cap a leak in a ruptured pipe 1,500m below the surface is not expected to get under way until Tuesday at the earliest.
Crews used submarine robots yesterday to position equipment for the ‘top kill’ attempt to plug the leak with heavy mud and then seal it with cement.
But while a fleet of skimmers does its best to contain the huge slick that has spread across the gulf, oil washed past protective booms and continued to sully miles of Louisiana's coastline.
With the federal government facing accusations of lax supervision of lucrative offshore oil drilling, President Barack Obama vowed to hold Washington accountable and warned that the future of the industry hinges on assurances that such a disaster ‘never happens again.’
Mr Obama hinted for the first time that a criminal investigation could be launched as he unveiled a presidential commission aimed at probing the ‘root causes’ of the spill.
He noted concerns about the ‘cozy relationship between oil and gas companies and agencies that regulate them’ and said the ‘disaster was a breakdown of responsibility on the part of BP and perhaps others, including Transocean and Halliburton.’
President Obama gave the bipartisan presidential commission six months to report its findings and provide recommendations on how the oil industry can prevent and mitigate the impact of any future spills.
Some 1,100 vessels, over 24,900 personnel and more than two million feet of protective boom have been deployed so far by BP and federal, state and local agencies.
They have recovered over 9.7 million gallons of oily water so far.
BP says it has already spent over $700m on the cleanup. But for parts of the Gulf Coast's fragile ecosystem, it was all too little, too late.
