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Gulf Oil Sickens Hundreds of Florida Swimmers

Authorities are 'winging it' on water safety

By Rob Quinn,  Newser Staff

Posted Jul 2, 2010 2:26 AM CDT | Updated Jul 2, 2010 7:56 AM CDT

(Newser) – Just when they thought it was safe to go back in the water, hundreds of swimmers reported feeling ill after braving the waves when Pensacola authorities lifted the "no swimming" flag. Local officials rejected EPA advice to close beaches and are instead relying on lifeguards to spot oil and on bathers to use common sense and not swim where they see oil, the Christian Science Monitor reports.

Local authorities complain that tests to check whether water is safe take 3 days to complete, while the location of oil changes hour to hour. "I went swimming on Saturday in the Gulf, and it was fine," Buck Lee, the official who reopened the beaches, told the Pensacola News Journal. "A day or two later, I might not want to go in there." Some skeptical Pensacola residents say Lee reminds them of the mayor in Jaws who didn't want to ruin business by shutting down beaches to protect swimmers from sharks on a long holiday weekend.

Oil cleanup workers move absorbent booms off the beach as hundreds of people line up hand in hand as part of the Hands Across the Sand event in Pensacola Beach, Fla.
Oil cleanup workers move absorbent booms off the beach as hundreds of people line up hand in hand as part of the Hands Across the Sand event in Pensacola Beach, Fla.   (AP Photo/Dave Martin)
Sunbathers sit in the surf near empty beach chairs in Destin, Fla.
Sunbathers sit in the surf near empty beach chairs in Destin, Fla.   (AP Photo/Dave Martin)
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COMMENTS
Showing 3 of 26 comments
lesters
Jul 3, 2010 8:19 AM CDT
BP coulden't care less about any beaches or people, they are only after the bucks. And Obama is a Bush/Cheney man from day one. He was appointed because he could BS well and follow directions, he has continued or enhanced every criminal unlawful deed that Bush/Cheney created. WE may as well have given Bush a 3rd term. And any bad mouthing Obama does about big oil is all for show and he has been told how far he can go.
neutralzone
Jul 2, 2010 10:29 PM CDT
Yeaaah. I've seen this one before...Oh, I remember, ! It's the one that says the authorities say it's safe to swim with the great white up there in that New England area..hmmm.
billbobaggins
Jul 2, 2010 7:52 PM CDT
Sad...very sad. I'm not an environmentalist, but I will say that this is one big clusterfuck that's going to have repercussions for years to come. I live along the coast in Florida, and people that rely on the Gulf for their income are losing their jobs or going out of business. I'm waiting for the Coast Guard to start telling people they can't swim, fish or even boat in the Gulf anymore.

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