Robin's Blog for Dauphin Island

TOWN OF DAUPHIN ISLAND UPDATE
May 12 , 2010 @ 8:00 a.m.
Check the Town website (www.TownofDauphinIsland.org) daily for new updates.

• UPDATE:
  • Clean up crews continue to monitor Dauphin Island beaches for “tarballs” (a photo of a tarball is included at the bottom of this email). Dauphin Island beaches and surrounding water have not been closed to sunning and swimming. The Alabama Department of Environmental Management and Alabama Department of Public Health are monitoring the situation, as well as taking air and water samples, and will make any determinations on beach closures or other health advisories. If you see a tarball on the beach or in the water:
    • Avoid contact (see note below, “Are tarballs hazardous to your health?”)
    • Call 1-866-448-5816 to report oiled shoreline.
  • Are tarballs hazardous to your health?
    • According to NOAA, “For most people, an occasional brief contact with a small amount of oil, while not recommended, will do no harm. However, some people are especially sensitive to chemicals, including the hydrocarbons found in crude oil and petroleum products. They may have an allergic reaction or develop rashes even from brief contact with oil. In general, we recommend that contact with oil be avoided. If contact occurs, wash the area with soap and water, baby oil, or a widely used, safe cleaning compound such as the cleaning paste sold at auto parts stores. Avoid using solvents, gasoline, kerosene, diesel fuel, or similar products on the skin. These products, when applied to skin, present a greater health hazard than the smeared tarball itself.
  • For more information on tarballs, go to www.response.restoration.noaa.gov/, click on the link to “Responding to Oil Spills,” then scroll down and click on the link in the middle column entitled “Tarballs.”

• Local Workers Needed by Contaminant Control, Inc.
  • This North Carolina company is conducting a training on Dauphin Island for workers on May 13 at 8 a.m. The training is a four day program. For more information call 704-273-1500.

• Status of the Oil Spill
  • Relief well drilling continues and is not expected to provide any results for several months.
  • Official projections from the Unified Command indicate that the oil spill will be headed on a more westerly trajectory, with the Mississippi Delta and Louisiana barrier islands feeling the largest effects of the ongoing spill through projections running through Wednesday, May 12th at 6:00 p.m. The map projection is included at the bottom of this email.

INFORMATION SITES AND NUMBERS

www.townofdauphinisland.org – updated information focusing on island issues

www.deepwaterhorizonresponse.com – link to latest information about the oil spill, including the initial incident, efforts to stop the leak, projected trajectory, and the Alabama contingency plan.

www.response.restoration.noaa.gov – link to information on the emergency response and restoration process, as well as the latest projected trajectory.

251-431-6409 or mbnep@mobilebaynep.com – to volunteer for clean up efforts.

1-866-557-1401 – to report oiled wildlife.

1-800-440-0858 – to report oil related damage.

1-866-448-5816 – to report oiled shoreline or request volunteer information.

281-366-5511 or HorizonSupport@OEGLLC.com – to inquire about adding your marine vessel to the clean up response fleet.

1-800-392-5658 – Alabama Attorney General’s consumer complaint line to report fraud or price gouging.



Local numbers for the Command Center in Mobile to report seeing oil, smelling oil, or for any other questions related to the oil spill.