Florida Releases July 23, 2010 Gulf Oil Spill Situation Update
On July 23 the NOAA oil plume model shows the oil plume 75 miles from Pensacola and 135 miles from Panama City.
Bonnie could degenerate into an area of low pressure and warnings will likely discontinue later this morning. As of 7:00 EDT on July 24 Bonnie’s location is about 215 miles (345 kilometers) East Southeast of the mouth of the Mississippi River and 165 miles (260 kilometers) South of Apalachicola.
Maximum sustained winds are at 30 mph (50 km/hr) and movement is West Northwest over the Gulf of Mexico at 18 mph (32 km/hr).
The NOAA trajectory forecasts scattered tarball fields already nearshore may be carried onshore along the Panhandle coast.
Offshore, no oil has been observed within or moving towards Eddy Franklin and there is no clear path for oil to enter the Florida Straits.
Currently Deepwater Horizon is not discharging any oil into the Gulf of Mexico. BP well integrity testing is on hold due to Tropical Storm Bonnie. Progress on the two relief wells has also been suspended until the storm passes.
FDEP announced that the removal of tier 1 and 2 boom has been halted. Supplemental Tier 3 boom removal will continue as weather permits. The removed boom and equipment will be temporarily stored to prevent damage and will be redeployed as conditions permit.
Easterly winds of 5-10 knots, seas of 1-3 feet nearshore and 4-6 feet offshore, and a 20% chance of rain are expected across the northern Gulf coast today. However, Tropical Strom Bonnie will approach the central Gulf of Mexico tonight and tomorrow and will cause winds, seas, and rain chances to increase as it tracks towards eastern Louisiana late Saturday.
Heat indices will mostly reach 105-110 across the Florida Panhandle today, and a heat advisory has been issued for the Western Panhandle until 7pm CDT this evening. Easterly winds and southeasterly waves will continue to push the main portion of the oil plume towards the northwest.
The official National Hurricane Center is forecasting Tropical Storm Bonnie to move through South Florida today, before heading into the southeastern Gulf of Mexico late tonight.
Once in the Gulf of Mexico, it may move more northwestward, with a potential second landfall near the eastern Louisiana coastline late Saturday as a tropical storm.
Florida Beaches Remain OPEN! Learn more.
Governor Charlie Crist, the State Emergency Response Team and the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) are actively coordinating and responding to the Deepwater Horizon incident.
The following is a summary of state and BP response actions as of July 23, 2010.
Map of BP Oil Spill as of July 23, 2010. Click on images for larger picture.
This forecast is based on the NWS spot forecast from Wednesday, July 21 PM. Currents were obtained from several models (NOAA Gulf of Mexico, West Florida Shelf/USF, TGLO/TAMU, NAVO/NRL) and HFR measurements. The model was initialized from Wednesday satellite imagery analysis (NOAA/NESDIS) and overflight observations. The leading edge may contain tarballs that are not readily observable from the imagery (hence not included in the model initialization). Oil near bay inlets could be brought into that bay by local tidal currents.
Winds are forecast to weaken to 10 kts overnight and become easterly through Thursday. Friday winds are forecast to be ENE/NE at 10-15 kts. Today’s overflights and satellite imagery indicate the surface oil is continuing to break up into numerous patches. The leading edge continues to move north towards the Chandeleur Islands and northwestward towards the Mississippi Delta. The Chandeleur Islands, Breton Sound, the Mississippi Delta and shorelines west to Terrebonne Bay are threatened by shoreline contacts within this forecast period.
National Hurricane Center issues advisories on Tropical Storm Bonnie.
Visit geoplatform.gov/gulfresponse/ to see the latest information about the oil spill’s trajectory, the position of NOAA’s research ships, spilled oil’s coastal location and the areas closed to shipping.
Current Situation:
Florida beaches are open.
This event has been designated a Spill of National Significance.
Unified Area Command continues with a comprehensive oil well intervention and spill response planning following the April 22 sinking of the Transocean Deepwater Horizon drilling rig 130 miles southeast of New Orleans:
- More than 41,200 personnel are working the on and offshore response.
- Oil-water mix recovered: nearly 34.7 million gallons.
- Response vessels available: more than 4,300
- Response aircraft available: 114
- Dispersant: more than 1.84 million gallons deployed.
- There is no planned use of dispersants in Florida waters.
Florida Specific:
Tar balls, tar mats and light sheen continue to be reported in Northwest Florida.
Isolated impacts will be possible in Northwest Florida over the next 72 hours.
Five state-leased skimmers remain on standby in Northwest Florida to protect sensitive inland water bodies. These skimmers are operating out of Escambia, Okaloosa, Bay, Gulf and Franklin Counties.
Oil Containment Boom (in feet) total: 609,761 deployed in Florida. Tier 1 & Tier 2: 445,000 / Tier 3: 164,761 In accordance with established plans, protective booming, staging, and boom maintenance is being conducted along the coast from Escambia to Franklin.
222 vessels are deployed in Florida for the Vessels of Opportunity program.
910 Qualified Community Responders are working in the Florida Panhandle.
Federal Fishery closure, west of Cape San Blas to state line. 26,388sq mi of southeast portion has been reopened. (see NOAA FB10-060)
In addition to $100,000 for Volunteer Florida to maintain a volunteer registration database, BP has issued over $75 million in grants to Florida for booming, tourism advertising, and state preparedness and response efforts. An additional $500,000 has been issued by BP to fund innovative technology solutions for Okaloosa Cty.
BP claims in Florida total 32,907 with approximately $ 44,806,510.97 paid.
Florida Information Lines:
The Florida Oil Spill Information Line (FOSIL) is available from 8am-6pm EDT daily.
- English – (888) 337-3569 / TDD – (800) 955-8771 / Voice – (800) 955-8770
- Spanish – (877) 955-8773
- Haitian Creole – (877) 955-8707
For general health/exposures information questions related to the oil spill, contact the Florida Poison Control Center at (800) 222-1222.
Two public hotline numbers for oil spill investigation and cleanup:
- Impacted Wildlife: (866) 557-1401
- Oiled Shoreline: (877) 2-SAVE-FL or #DEP for cellular devices
The Florida Department of State has established a hotline for archeological, historical preservation, and tribal lands that may be impacted by the Deepwater Horizon incident: (850) 245-6530.
To confirm legitimate charities and determine if an organization is registered with the state, call Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FDACS) (800) 435- 7352 or www.800helpfla.com.
Information Websites:
Volunteer registration: www.VolunteerFlorida.org and click “Register to Help”
Health advisories: http://www.dep.state.fl.us/deepwaterhorizon/health.htm
State sampling data: www.nrdata.org
GATOR web mapping application: http://map.floridadisaster.org/gator/
Recovery related jobs: http://FloridaGulfRecoveryJobs.com/
NOAA GeoPlatform, response management application: http://www.geoplatform.gov/gulfresponse/
State Actions:
State Emergency Operations Center (SEOC) is at a Level 1 (Full), operating from 0700 to 1800 EDT, with Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) as the lead agency.
Governor’s Executive Orders 10-99, 10-100, 10-106 and 10-132 declared a state of emergency for identified Florida coastal counties.
Governor’s Executive Order 10-101 established the Gulf Oil Spill Economic Recovery Task Force, which will facilitate efforts by Florida businesses and industries to recover the loss of commerce and revenues due to the oil spill.
Governor’s Executive Order 10-169, authorizing property appraisers to provide interim assessments of properties affected by the Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster.
Conducting daily conference calls with county and emergency management partners, the Federal On-Scene Coordinator, and various Unified Commands.
A portion of coastal state waters offshore of Escambia County is closed to the harvest of saltwater fish, crabs and shrimp.
A SERT Toxicological Data Analysis Cell is providing consistent scientific assessments of collected sampling to inform local/state decision making.
The Agency for Workforce Innovation and Regional Workforce Boards are identifying and filling jobs related to the oil spill: 15,329 positions advertised; 43,686 applicants referred.
129 Florida National Guard personnel on duty at various duty posts in the
Deepwater Horizon area of operations.
19,600 volunteers have registered to respond to Deepwater Horizon. 24,213 volunteer hours have been worked.
AmeriCorps, National Civilian Community Corps members are assisting with models for a community-run Citizen Information Station (CIS).
Conducting daily reconnaissance flights and shoreline patrol from Escambia to Franklin Counties for impact. Real time reconnaissance reports are being entered into SERT GATOR.
Currently, Florida’s coast has 9 decontamination sites for response vessels and 8 that are being operated for commercial vessels. A site for recreational vessel decontamination has also been established and 13 additional recreational vessel sites are in negotiations with BP.
Recovered Oiled Wild Life: 07/18/10
See the consolidated wildlife report updated by noon each day: http://www.deepwaterhorizonresponse.com/go/doctype/2931/55963
The Boom Coordination Cell continues to coordinate additional boom requests. The Innovative Technology Cell continues to assess alternative clean-up technologies suggested by the public and stakeholders.
Emergency Bridge Loan Program, cumulative totals- Applications: 52; Declined: 5; Approved: 47; Amount: $1,155,000.00
The Small Business Administration issued an Economic Injury Disaster Loan Declaration for the State of Florida. Outreach Centers are open in 8 counties.
Total Loan Applications:
- Issued: 628 Accepted: 194 Declined: 61 Approved: 34
- Loan amount approved: $3,590,900.00
Local States of Emergency
- Escambia: Expires on 7/30/10
- Santa Rosa: Expires on 7/23/10
- Okaloosa: Concurrent with State
- Walton: Expires on 7/23/10
- Bay: Expires on 7/29/10
- Gulf: Expires on 7/27/10
- Franklin: Expires on 7/26/10
- Wakulla: Expires on 7/26/10
- Jefferson: Expires on 7/29/10
- Dixie: Expires on 7/22/10
- Sarasota: Expires on 7/27/10
County EOC Activations
- Escambia, Level 3
- Santa Rosa, Level 2 (Partial)
- Okaloosa, Level 2 (Partial)
- Walton, Level 3
- Bay, Level 2 (Partial)
- Gulf, Level 2 (Partial)
- Franklin, Level 3
- Wakulla, Level 3
- Jefferson, Level 3
Topics: 2010, beaches, BP, British Petroleum, business, coastline, Deepwater Horizon, Economy, emergency response, environment, environmental impact, fishing, Florida, Florida seafood products, GOHSEP, Governance, government, Governor Charlie Crist, Gulf of Mexico, gulf oil map, Hurricane Bonnie, July 23, landfall predictions, loans, Mexico Beach, moniter, monitor, news, noaa oil spill, Obama Administration, oil loop current, Oil Rig, oil spill, oil spill forecast, oil spill map, Panhandle, Pensacola Beach, Pensacola Pass, pollution, President Obama, relief wells, tourism, Transocean, Tropical Storm Bonnie, U.S., United States, VISIT FLORIDA marketing campaign, White House, www.visitflorida.com
Print This Article in Plain Text
|
|
Latest Headlines
- Osama Bin Laden Dead?
- Florida To Share $1 Billion For Gulf Coast Restoration Efforts
- Texas Prays For Rain During Extreme Drought Conditions
- Governor Christie Takes Action To Reduce Diesel Emissions, Improve Air Quality
- Governor McDonnell Outlines Draft Transportation Improvement Program
- Alaska Energy Bill Passes Legislature
- Illinois State Building Receives ENERGY STAR Award
- Homeland Security Begins Using National Terrorism Advisory System
- U.S. Outlines New Health Insurance Options For Graduating College Students
- Electrolux Expands In North Carolina, To Create 200 Jobs In Charlotte
- Virginia Storm Victims To Receive Tax Extension
- U.S. Expands Broadband Investment For Rural Areas To Accelerate Job Creation
- U.S. To Invest $130 Million For Advanced Energy Research
- Michigan Passes “I’m Sorry” Bill
- Kentucky Sells Two State Aircraft To Save Taxpayer Dollars
