The US Coast Guard is investigating a 14-mile oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico after Hurricane Ida. The spill is in federal waters off the port of Fourchon, Louisiana, said Sam Jones, head of the Louisiana Office of Oil Spill Coordinators.
"It's a big spot," Jones said. "It's the biggest of all."
The Coast Guard said in a statement that the crude oil allegedly comes from a pipeline owned by Talos Energy, a Houston oil and gas exploration company, and added that the agency is in a preliminary stage of investigation. In response, Talos said that while it is in charge of the spill response, it denies responsibility, stating that the spill originated from an unknown source in the area where it ceased production in 2017.
"Extensive local observations show Talos assets are not the source. Talos will continue to work closely with the US Coast Guard and other state and federal agencies to identify the source of the spill and coordinate a successful response."
Talos said it has deployed two 95-foot vessels to conduct oil recovery operations at the spill site, as well as an additional vessel and divers to assist in locating the source.