BP oil spill site evacuated ahead of tropical storm Bonnie

Key ships stationed over BP’s Gulf oil spill site were ordered to evacuate yesterday ahead of Tropical Storm Bonnie and engineers have grown so confident in the leaky cap fixed to the well head that they will leave it closed while they are away.

Tropical Storm Bonnie, which cruised over the Bahamas and was to enter the Gulf of Mexico by the weekend, could delay by another 12 days the push to plug the broken well for good using mud and cement.

“While this is not a hurricane, it’s a storm that will have probably some significant impacts, we’re taking appropriate cautions,” Allen said in Mobile, Alabama.

Bonnie is the second named storm of the 2010 Atlantic hurricane season, with wind speeds of 40mph, the US National Hurricane Center says.

In a major setback for BP, ships working on the damaged Macondo have been ordered to evacuate the area by the US government. Forecasters say the edge of the tropical storm could reach the spill area by early on Saturday.

A “packer” plug used during storms has been placed in the relief well to stabilise it while workers leave the site.

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BP oil spill site evacuated ahead of tropical storm Bonnie