The latest word from Mayor A.J. Holloway, after a briefing for local and state officials led by Gov. Haley Barbour this morning at 10:30:
“The governor reported that the oil spill is now about 25 miles south of the Chandeleur Islands, which is about 60 miles south of Biloxi.
“It’s a very, very light sheen, about the thickness of human hair, and it’s moving very, very slowly.
“They’re continuing to try to put the dome over the three leaks at the source. That could take three to four weeks. If that doesn’t work, it could take 60 to 90 days for another rig to relieve pressure from the leak.
“That’s the word from this morning’s briefing.”
“Here in Biloxi, we continue to be in a support role. We continue to have essential personnel on standby, just as we did throughout the weekend. We continue to seek double booming of Point Cadet Marina, the Biloxi Small Craft Harbor and the adjoining commercial dock.
“We encourage volunteers to attend one of the training sessions that BP is offering at Jeff Davis campus of Gulf Coast Community College.”
Basic training for volunteers offered each weekday afternoon, evening
BP has announced that basic safety and health training for volunteers will take place Monday through Saturday at 2, 4 and 6 p.m. in the Fine Arts Auditorium at the Jefferson Davis campus of Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College.
These volunteer training sessions will qualify volunteers to participate in pre-landfall beach cleaning to minimize impact on the beaches of any oil contamination of trash and debris on the beaches, BP said. It will not qualify the volunteers to do cleanup of oil contaminated beaches and wildlife.
Advanced preparations are being made for a major protection and cleaning effort on the shorelines of Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida. According to BP, Command Centers opened Saturday, but no other information was available at this writing.
The basic training sessions, which actually began in Jackson County over the weekend, will also be conducted at the Jackson County campus of Gulf Coast Community College at 2, 4 and 6 p.m. Monday through Saturday. Training session also are in the works for the Hancock County Center of Pearl River Community College, BP said.
