NEW ORLEANS - The cleanup of an oily mess off the Louisiana coast is being put on hold for a second consecutive day because of high seas in the Gulf of Mexico.
Coast Guard Petty Officer Erik Swanson said Sunday that 2.1-metre swells made it impossible for crews to contain the spill about 64 kilometres from the coast.
A new leak was discovered Saturday. Officials have said it is dumping as much as 159,000 litres of oil into the gulf each day. Crews, airplanes, boats and equipment are on standby, ready to resume cleaning to try to stop the oil from washing ashore on the beaches, barrier islands and wetlands of Louisiana, Mississippi and possibly Florida.
A massive explosion five days ago destroyed an offshore oil rig.
