May 27th, 2010
09:55 AM ET

Boats involved in spill recovery recalled after crew falls ill

More than 100 commercial vessels have been pulled from the waters off the Louisiana coast after nine people involved in oil cleanup operations reported feeling sick, according to agencies responding to the Gulf oil spill and a hospital spokeswoman.

The Unified Command, a coalition of agencies including the U.S. Coast Guard, the Department of the Interior and the National Parks Service, said it recalled 125 vessels from Breton Sound, which lies about 50 miles southeast of New Orleans.

Four crew members in three vessels involved in oil recovery operations reported feeling sick, the agencies said in a statement.

However, Lisa Faust with the Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals said nine people reported feelings of dizziness.

Seven people were transported to West Jefferson Medical Center, said spokeswoman Taslin Alfonzo - six by ambulance and one by helicopter. All seven were under evaluation as of Wednesday night and were complaining of differing symptoms, she said.

Paramedics were checking on people in all the recalled boats, Coast Guard spokesman Lt. Cmdr. Rob Wyman said.

The four crew members who prompted the recall complained of nausea and dizziness along with headaches and chest pains, officials said. Other crew members declined treatment at the dock.

"No other personnel are reporting symptoms, but we are taking this action as an extreme safeguard," said Coast Guard Chief Petty Officer Robinson Cox.

The vessels were involved in cleaning up oil that has been gushing into the Gulf of Mexico since April when an oil rig sank about 40 miles of Louisiana, gushing an estimated 5,000 barrels (210,000 gallons) of crude a day.

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Filed under: Gulf Coast Oil Spill
soundoff (10 Responses)
  1. john bertucci

    In the last paragraph: why do you cite BP's estimated fiigure of 5,000 barrels a day, when scientists estimate 95,000?

    May 27, 2010 at 10:47 am | Report abuse |
  2. pedro

    And that's BP's INITIAL figure – I think even they admit it's (much) more now. Closet right wing journalism at it's shoddiest. Who owns CNN? Murdoch?

    May 27, 2010 at 2:10 pm | Report abuse |
  3. B

    Shouldn't we be more concerned about the workers being sick, than an "ESTIMATE" We'll never know for sure how muck oil was spilled, but it was enough.

    May 27, 2010 at 2:48 pm | Report abuse |
  4. mygreenplanet

    Why aren't they trying some of the environmentally friendly solutions in lieu of the toxic dispersant such as offered by Eagle Environmental Solutions – http://www.eagleecosolutions.com – which uses a unique colloid approach?

    May 27, 2010 at 3:34 pm | Report abuse |
  5. Damião Carlos

    We cannot figure out how many animals will disappear? Can't you? http://www.englishtips-self-taught.blogspot.com

    May 27, 2010 at 3:46 pm | Report abuse |
  6. e

    A few tbsp. of peanut butter and some good clean air might help the ill workers' to feel better.

    May 27, 2010 at 5:46 pm | Report abuse |
    • e

      That is only if they're not allergic or sensitive to peanuts. Forgot to mention that in earlier comment.

      May 27, 2010 at 5:47 pm | Report abuse |
  7. scot hall

    We are all toast w/no peanut butter. Let's all be positive. Maybe that will help?

    May 27, 2010 at 8:30 pm | Report abuse |
  8. David Foster

    Simplicity – Set two huge ankors on either side of the leak, attach chains with a winch from one ankor to the other, have the chains go right over the leak, weld a curved steel plate to the chains right over the leak, attach a thick flexible fabric material to the steel plate – winch the assembly down pulling the steel backed fabric down over the leak.

    May 29, 2010 at 7:34 pm | Report abuse |
  9. john Timberlake

    Eagle Enviromental Solutions products are toxic free they do not contain any form of chemical or petroleum products or traces of chemical or petroleum products.
    All of Eagle's product range are all produced from natural products, they are non toxic and biodegrade many forms of pollution. When using Eagle's product protective cloths are not needed.

    January 28, 2011 at 1:10 pm | Report abuse |
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