NEW ORLEANS – The Coast Guard responded to an oil discharge near Port Sulphur, La., on Dec. 9 Coast Guard Sector New Orleans received a report from the National Response Center that a crude oil well in Rattle Snake Bayou, southwest of Port Sulphur, was reported to be leaking. The amount discharged had not yet been determined. The well is rated to produce 5,476 gallons of oil per day. The source of the leak had not been secured as of late Sunday. Hilcorp, the owner of the well, has contracted ES&H as an oil spill response organization. ES&H currently has four response boats and 13 personnel conducting containment and cleanup. Wild Well Control has been contracted to work on securing the source of the leak. Hilcorp also contracted an overflight of the incident. A CG helicopter also conducted an aerial assessment. (Coast Guard 12/09/18) Hilcorp of Houston is one of the largest privately held exploration and production companies in the U.S. with field offices in Venice and Lafayette, La. Port Sulphur is about 35 miles south of Belle Chasse, La. UPDATE: On Dec. 10, the CG reported the establishment of a Unified Command, and consists of the Coast Guard, Hilcorp, and the Louisiana Oil Spill Coordinator's Office. About 1,700 feet of hard boom has been deployed to contain the discharging oil, 2,000 feet of absorbent boom to collect it, and 630 gallons of oily water have been recovered so far. UPDATE 2: The Unified Command continues to respond to the well discharge of crude oil, gas, and water near Port Sulphur. Source control crews have controlled the leak, and continue to work to repair the well. About 11,000 feet of hard boom has been deployed. About 4,830 gallons of oily water mixture have been recovered so far. There are 116 oil spill response personnel on scene conducting containment and clean-up.
UPDATE
3: At approximately 10:15 p.m. Dec. 16, personnel on a rig barge mechanically
plugged the well head permanently securing it. It is estimated that 9,282
gallons of oil was discharged before the well head was controlled. (Coast Guard
12/17/18)
