Pipeline rupture spills 90,000 gallons of oil into southeast Louisiana coastal area

NEW ORLEANS (AP) _ Strong wind hampered cleanup efforts Sunday as workers tried to contain a 90,000-gallon crude oil spill off the southeast Louisiana coast. <br><br>Four-foot waves made it difficult for

Sunday, April 7th 2002, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

NEW ORLEANS (AP) _ Strong wind hampered cleanup efforts Sunday as workers tried to contain a 90,000-gallon crude oil spill off the southeast Louisiana coast.

Four-foot waves made it difficult for boats called skimmers to collect the oil, BP spokesman Daren Beaudo said. By early Sunday afternoon, the Coast Guard said about 6,720 gallons had been recovered.

Officials were still trying to determine what caused the BP pipeline to rupture Saturday.

Workers used 24,400 feet of floating barriers to contain the oil on the water's surface, the Coast Guard said in a written statement.

No damage to wildlife had been reported, but Beaudo said he expected there to be some shoreline impact.

Little Lake is mostly surrounded by marshland but connects to the Barataria Bay and the Gulf of Mexico at Louisiana's far southeastern coast, about 35 miles south of New Orleans.