Pensacola Oil Spill Claims

A huge oil spill is underway following the explosion on the oil drilling rig Transocean Deepwater Horizon forty miles from Louisiana killing 11 workers.  The oil rig sank two days later on April 22, 2010. The drilling rig was being leased by British Petroleum (BP).
There may be more than oil seeping to the surface after this disaster. There are potential economic and property damage claims for fishermen, oyster farms, tourism and ports. Currently, the oil is oozing its way toward fragile natural resources along the coasts of Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida.

Damage to the Fisherman
As economic losses mount, class-action lawsuits have been filed by the commercial fishing industry. Companies named defendants are:
Transocean - the lessor of the drilling rig, Deepwater Horizon
British Petroleum - the lessee of the drilling platform
Halliburton Energy Services - involved in cementing the well and well cap
Cameron International - the supplier of rig's blow-out prevention equipment that failed

The oil spill is threatening to harm the economic lives of people in the fishing industry for the foreseeable future.
The damages could mount to millions and millions of dollars.

Damages to Ports
The fishing industry is not the only business sectors that could suffer damages.
Nearly 17% of America's trade cargo is handled by five Gulf Coast ports. In 2003, the total tonnage of  sea and land  cargo was 1.1 billion tons.   178 million tons came through the ports of New Orleans, Mobile, Alabama, and Pascagoula and Gulfport, Mississippi.

Tourism
The oil spill will also impact tourism which is vital to coastal communities.  Thousands work in or depend on the restaurant and hospitality industries along the Gulf Coast.  All may have rights to make claims.

The Oil Pollution Act
The Oil Pollution Act(OPA) of 1990 was passed by Congress  in response to the 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill.  The OPA was to prevent further oil spills from occurring, stating companies must create a plan to prevent spills and prepare containment and cleanup plans for oil spills.

The OPA strengthened the EPA’s ability to prevent and respond to oil spills.  A clean up trust fund   was established and funded by taxes on the oil industry. The trust fund is available if the responsible party is incapable or unwilling to do damage control.

The Oil Spill Grows and Moves
Original reports put the oil leaking into the Gulf of Mexico at 42,000 gallons daily, but now those numbers have been modified up to about five times the original estimate, and even beyond  that.
The incident has eclipsed the worst oil spill in U.S. history, the Exxon Valdez oil spill of 1989. That oil spill in Prince William Sound, Alaska, was eleven million gallons of oil. Damages from the gulf spill will go down as one of the worst environmental disasters in history.

Contact a Lawyer
If you have suffered economic damages related to this oil spill, you need a lawyer.  Samuel W. Bearman is an experienced attorney, often representing claimants following disasters.  Do not hesitate to seek sound legal advice.

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