On April 20, 2010, an explosion occurred on the Deepwater Horizon offshore drilling
rig, resulting in the tragic deaths of 11 workers and many more injured who were
subsequently rescued at sea. The exploration well was located in the Mississippi
Canyon Block 252, in the Gulf of Mexico, and was operated by British Petroleum (BP)
and owned by Transocean Ltd.
On April 22, 2010, the rig sank into the Gulf of Mexico, leaving a damaged riser
spilling an estimated 185 million gallons of crude oil into the Gulf by the time
it was capped off on July 15, 2010. This incident was declared a “spill of national
significance” by the Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security. A full-scale
emergency response plan was launched by the responsible party, BP, and the U.S.
Coast Guard (USCG) in an effort to contain the oil spill, cap the undersea well,
and mitigate the consequences to the gulf coast.
The LA BEOC was partially activated on April 28, 2010 in response to the Gulf Oil
Spill and tasked to respond and assist in four areas:
Economic Impact Assessments The LA BEOC team estimated the volume of the spill
corresponding to various scenarios of spillage as well as estimated the impact to
various sectors of the state economy by engaging subject matter experts from universities,
in consultation with industry. This work assisted in determining the impacts of
the oil spill to the Louisiana economy.
Proposal/Idea Collection In response to Governor Jindal’s call for innovative
ideas, the LA BEOC team created a web portal which collected ideas and proposals,
and forwarded them to the appropriate agency. The proposal categories included Coastal
Resource Protection; Dispersal and Skimming; Fish and Wildlife; Remediation and
Recovery; Well Shut-off effort, and boom. A science panel, consisting of experts
from around the state, was established to review proposals, make recommendations,
and forward to BP and the USCG.
Private Sector Resources The LA BEOC team researched local, state, and national
private sector resources available to meet specific needs identified by the Governor's
Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness (GOHSEP) in managing and
responding to the oil spill.
Helpful Links The LA BEOC team published an informative website making available
relevant links including those for volunteers and donations as well as other emergency
services available to the public.