New Orleans, LA – Some 40 miles out into the Gulf Of Mexico, I jump off the boat into the thickest patch of red oil I’ve ever seen. I open my eyes and realize my mask is already smeared. I can’t see anything and we’re just five seconds into the dive.
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Dropping beneath the surface the only thing I see is oil. To the left, right, up and down — it sits on top of the water in giant pools, and hangs suspended fifteen feet beneath the surface in softball sized blobs. There is nothing alive under the slick, although I see a dead jellyfish and handful of small bait fish.
I’m alone because the other divers with me wouldn’t get in the water without Hazmat suits on, and with my mask oiled over and the water already dark, I don’t dive deep.
It’s quiet, and to be honest scary, extremely low visibility. I spend just 10 minutes swimming around taking pictures, taking video. I want people to see the spill in a new way, a way they haven’t yet.
I also want to get out of the water. Badly.
I make my way to the back of the boat unaware of just how covered I am. To be honest, I look a little like one of those poor pelicans we’ve all been seeing for days now. The oil is so thick and sticky, almost like a cake batter. It does not wipe off. You have to scrape it off, in layers until you finally get close to the skin. Then you pour on some Dawn dishwashing soap and scrub. I think to myself: No fish, no bird, no turtle would ever be able to clean this off of themselves. If any animal, any were to end up in this same puddle there is almost no way they could escape.
The cleaning process goes on for half an hour before the captain will even think about letting me back in the boat. I’m clean, so I stand up. But the bottoms of my feet still had oil, and I fall back in the water. The process starts again. Another 30 minutes of cleaning and finally I’m ready to step into the boat.
just to show that journalists will do anything for a story.
what did he think? everyone sees the oil, so if you dive into it, you’ll be covered in oil. duh
oy this is horrorible
Even the Messiah Obama cant fix this what are we gonna do
Wow! what a mess we’ve got.
Humm I geuss its not clear oil as you have seen before on the pictures. Its moor like a heavy tar “yeuch” who knows the consequences of for the long run??
“they will search for a Dag Katan L’choleh and not find it”
Abarbenel (Sefer Yeshuos Meshicho) suggests that if this is to be understood literally, it would mean that this would happen in a local area. He reminds us that “kimey tzeis’cho me’eretz mitzrayim ar’enu niflaos” and compares it to the first plague in mitzrayim when all the fish in the Nile died.
Uch, this is horrible.
BP will go out of business and many higher ups will commit suicide. my only question is will they jump into the oily water or jump off a bridge?