Florida Releases July 29, 2010 Gulf Oil Spill Situation Update
On July 29 the NOAA Oil Spill Trajectory shows the BP oil plume 50 miles from Pensacola and 135 miles from Panama City.
While NOAA oil trajectories forecast oil patches to remain well south and west of Florida, with no direct oil impacts through at least Saturday, minor tarball impacts are still possible.
Offshore, no oil has been observed within or moving towards Eddy Franklin for over 4 weeks and there is no clear path for oil to enter the Florida Straits. Also, significant tropical activity is not expected through Friday.
Winds over Florida waters are expected to be out of the northwest in the morning, then out of a general west direction in the afternoon through Friday. Saturday through the weekend, winds are forecast to be out of the south-southwest.
Winds should be 15 knots or less within 60 miles of the coastline each day, with waves less than 3 feet. Mostly dry conditions are expected for much of the Panhandle today, though a few isolated afternoon showers will be possible over eastern areas. Rain chances will begin to increase again Friday through Sunday to around 30-40%.
Heat indices will be near 105-110 degrees along the shoreline for the next several days, though some isolated areas may reach as high as 114, especially on Friday and Saturday.
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 29, 2010.
Map of BP Oil Spill as of July 29, 2010. Click on images for larger picture.
This forecast is based on the NWS spot forecast from Wednesday, July 28 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 Tuesday-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 become NW overnight and continuing through Saturday at speeds of 5-15 kts. Observations from overflights indicate the remaining scattered “anomalies” observed by remote sensing are predominantly light sheens with very little recoverable oil being observed. With light winds and calm seas today, many of these anomalies were also confirmed to be false positives. Patches of emulsified oil and sheens were observed to the west of the Delta nearshore off Timbalier Bay and Barataria Bay. Shoreline impacts will begin to be reduced by the offshore winds, however, trajectories indicate Breton Sound, the Mississippi Delta and shorelines west to Timbalier Bay continue to be threatened by scattered impacts within this forecast period.
View the Florida Gator Interactive Oil Spill Map here.
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.
Currently Deepwater Horizon is not discharging any oil into the Gulf of Mexico. Preparations for the static kill will resume once equipment is reconnected. 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.
- This event has been designated a Spill of National Significance.
- More than 29,800 personnel are working the on and offshore response.
- Oil-water mix recovered: nearly 34.7 million gallons.
- Response vessels available: more than 4,200
- Response aircraft available: 101
- Dispersant: more than 1.84 million gallons deployed.
- There is no planned use of dispersants in Florida waters.
Florida Specific:
All supplemental Tier 3 boom is being removed in the Northwest Florida counties.
Tar balls and light sheen continue to be reported in Northwest Florida.
Although sporadic sightings of tar balls may continue, Florida’s shoreline is not expected to receive additional impacts 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: 42,461 deployed in Florida. Tier 1 & Tier 2: 389,600 / Tier 3: 432,061. In accordance with established plans, protective booming, staging, and boom maintenance is being conducted along the coast from Escambia to Franklin. 166 vessels are deployed in Florida for the Vessels of Opportunity program. 691 Qualified Community Responders are working in the Florida Panhandle today.
Federal Fishery closure, west of Cape San Blas to state line. 26,388 sq mi of southeast portion has been reopened. (see NOAA FB10-060)
A portion of coastal state waters offshore of Escambia County is closed to the harvest of saltwater fish, crabs and shrimp.
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 County.
BP claims in Florida total 34,810 with approximately $ 48,398,473.60 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, response management application: http://FloridaGulfRecoveryJobs.com/
NOAA GeoPlatform: 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.
Four Florida branch offices are fully operational in Northwest Florida. These branch offices bring together federal, state and local agencies to streamline response efforts.
Conducting daily conference calls with county and emergency management partners, the Federal On-Scene Coordinator, and various Unified Commands.
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:
- 14,576 positions advertised
- 45,226 applicants referred
124 Florida National Guard personnel on duty at various duty posts in the Deepwater Horizon area of operations.
19,742 volunteers have registered to respond to Deepwater Horizon. 25,233 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 primary decontamination sites and 2 secondary sites for response vessels and 2 that are being operated for commercial vessels. 3 sites for recreational vessel decontamination have been established and 18 additional recreational vessel sites are in negotiations with BP.
Recovered Oiled Wild Life: 07/29/10
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: 61; Declined: 6; Approved: 55; Amount: $1,355,000.00
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: 680
- Accepted: 222
- Declined: 76 Approved: 42
- Loan amount approved: $4,497,200.00
Local States of Emergency
- Escambia: Expires on 8/6/10
- Santa Rosa: Expires on 7/30/10
- Okaloosa: Concurrent with State
- Walton: Expired
- Bay: Expires on 7/29/10
- Gulf: Expires on 8/3/10
- Franklin: Expires on 8/2/10
- Wakulla: Expires on 8/2/10
- Jefferson: Expires on 7/29/10
- Dixie: Expires on 7/29/10
- Sarasota: Expires on 8/3/10
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 2 (Partial)
- Jefferson, Level 3
Topics: 2010, beaches, BP, British Petroleum, business, coastline, Deepwater Horizon, Economy, emergency response, environment, environmental impact, Fishery Failure Determination, fishing, Florida, Florida seafood products, GOHSEP, Governance, government, Governor Charlie Crist, Gulf of Mexico, gulf oil map, July 29, 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, Panama City Beach, Panhandle, Pensacola Beach, Pensacola Pass, pollution, President Obama, tourism, Transocean, U.S., United States, VISIT FLORIDA marketing campaign, White House, www.visitflorida.com
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