TCRR Critical Timeline (of the first 48 days) is structured using official response data from DHRUC: the official DeepWater Horison Response Unified Command website's Current Operations timeline. We have added notes, questions, and press clips.

Working Notes:

The Oily Water Deficit: From the beginning, the top priority should have been sucking up the crude poison. The following analysis uses simple averages to track the progress of oil recovery effectiveness. By day 24 (with 520 vessels) an average of 200,000 gals oily water recovered per day (384 gals/vessel). By day 34 (with 1,150 vessels) an average of 300,000 gals/day (260 gals/vessel). By day 48 (with 2,700 vessels) an average of 322,500 gals/day (119 gals/vessel). The skimming efficiency of the fleet decreases by two-thirds. Needed: better inventory of vessels by purpose and capacity. Laying boom, checking boom, spotting, skimming (and types and capacities of skimmers).

Using a midpoint for the US Govt official estimate of discharge at 16,000 bbls/day (times 42 gals/bbl) the response needs to average 630,000 gals of "pure oil" recovery per day (shall we say one million gals of oily water?) A 200 percent increase in average daily collection of oily water is needed.

The Uncanny Coincidence: Day 28: May 17 was the day that a US Govt team officially estimated oil on surface. It was also the first day that the official statistics mention the use of "subsea" dispersants, which were approved on May 14 following official tests.

Day 48: June 6

Spill may linger into fall

“This will be well into the fall. This is a siege across the entire Gulf. This spill is holding everybody hostage, not only economically but physically. And it has to be attacked on all fronts,” said Coast Guard Adm. Thad Allen, overseeing the government’s response to the spill.

Crude cleanup plan: Boom and a bucket

Unified Command ordered a “clam shell” bucket to tackle an oil slick about 9 miles off Pensacola Beach, but stormy weather could hamper the cleanup, Florida Department of Environmental Protection Secretary Mike Sole said Sunday afternoon.

TCRR NOTE: In a pdf report about the cleanup of the 1997 NAKHODKA tanker sinking in Japan, the clam-shell method is recommended as better than booms and skimmers for emulsified "semi-solid lumps" which could be more cheaply and effectively removed by barges with clam-shell buckets, even if the overall percentage of intervention remaiins small. The report also says that when oil has dispersed beyond the ability of boats to skim effectively, the boats should be called in. Moreover, the report calls for an integrated, national contingency plan and unified response. Considering the complaint about bags of oily cleanup waste left unattended, the report calls for 1-ton flexible "Flecon" bags to be used for quick disposal of smaller bags, reducing the number of steps needed for efficient collection.

Pace of beach cleanup angers visitors, officials

Anger over what seemed to many to be a slow-moving cleanup operation boiled to the surface Sunday, with both beachgoers and local officials questioning how badly BP PLC and the government really want to remove the oil coating beaches on the northern Gulf.

Oily Sheen on Large Part of Alabama Waters

We don't see the floating patches of oil close into the shoreline instead, we see a sheen or film covering the majority of the water. "75 percent of the Gulf of Mexico that I've been able to see along Alabama's coast has a thin film of oil and you can see it, it's a shiny film."

DHRUC: 250,000 gals oily water (15.48 mil); Subsea dispersants 33,000 gals (303,000)

RESPONSE VESSELS: Total active response vessels: more than 2,700. BOOM DATA: Containment boom deployed: more than 2.16 million feet; Containment boom available: more than 682,000 feet; Sorbent boom deployed: more than 2.39 million feet; Sorbent boom available: nearly 2.40 million feet; Total boom deployed: more than 4.55 million feet (regular plus sorbent boom); Total boom available: more than 3.08 million feet (regular plus sorbent boom) OILY WATER RECOVERED: Oily water recovered: nearly 15.48 million gallons. DISPERSANTS: Surface dispersant used: more than 779,000 gallons; Subsea dispersant used: more than 303,000 gallons; Total dispersant used: more than 1,082,000 gallons; Dispersant available: more than 240,000 gallons. PERSONNEL INVOLVED: Overall personnel responding: more than 20,000 personnel responding.

TCRR NOTE: Average since Day 1: 322,500 gals/day oily water recovered (vs 2.9 mil gals day discharged "Wereley estimate"). 2.6 mil times 48 days = 124 mil gal deficit between discharge and recovery. (Assumes high percentage of oil in oily water recovery.) Costner's centrifuge said to go into testing this week? See Day 31: May 20 below.

Day 47: June 5

Louisiana officials ask for OSHA investigation of oil cleanup worker safety

Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals Secretary Alan Levine and Department of Environmental Quality Secretary Peggy Hatch sent a letter this week to the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration asking for a "full investigation of worker conditions for those involved in the oil spill response effort."

Imperfect barriers a fragile defense

Miles off shore before reaching the booms, the oil has been set afire, laced with nearly 250,000 gallons of chemical dispersants at the source of the leak and skimmed off the surface by more than 1,900 vessels. Those containment attempts have been attacked by politicians, scientists and heartsick coastal residents who say the science has not changed since the Exxon Valdez ran aground off the coast of Alaska in 1989, dumping raw crude on the shores.

Former EPA administrator William Reilly, who is co-chairing a presidential spill commission along with former Florida Sen. Bob Graham, called the response technology ``scandalous'' and promised it would be a ``prime focus'' of the commission's work. "The response technology is about as primitive as it was in the Exxon Valdez case,'' Reilly said Thursday on MSNBC. "Skimmers that are dysfunctional, booms that break, dispersants that are not ready for prime time and may or may not be toxic.''

In Florida, the U.S. Coast Guard has enlisted 928 charter boats, fishing boats and other vessels to lay boom and skim oil, Adm. Thad Allen said Friday in an interview with The Miami Herald and St. Petersburg Times. The Coast Guard is also preparing vacuum trucks to collect oil before it trickles into Escambia Bay.

Cap Slows Gulf Oil Leak as Engineers Move Cautiously

Mr. Obama promised that he would “stand with the people of the Gulf Coast until they are made whole.” He reeled off a ream of statistics to show the scale of the response so far. He said that more than 20,000 people are at work protecting the coastlines, and that he had authorized the deployment of 17,500 National Guard troops to help in the response. He said that 1,900 boats were in the gulf working on the cleanup, and that more than 4.3 million feet of boom had been deployed to try to keep oil from reaching the coastline.

DHRUC: 250,000 gals oily water (15.23 mil)

RESPONSE VESSELS: Total active response vessels: more than 2600. BOOM DATA: Containment boom deployed: more than 2.10 million feet. Containment boom available: more than 694,000 feet; Sorbent boom deployed: more than 2.34 million feet; Sorbent boom available: nearly 2.23 million feet; Total boom deployed: more than 4.44 million feet (regular plus sorbent boom); Total boom available: more than 2.93 million feet (regular plus sorbent boom). OILY WATER RECOVERED: Oily water recovered: nearly 15.23 million gallons. DISPERSANTS: Surface dispersant used: more than 779,000 gallons; Subsea dispersant used: more than 270,000 gallons; Total dispersant used: more than 1,049,000 gallons; Dispersant available: more than 448,000 gallons. PERSONNEL INVOLVED: Overall personnel responding: more than 20,000 personnel responding.

TCRR NOTE: The doc number for this post (593339) adds evidence that "real time" updates to this list format began on June 4.

Twelve (Imperfect) Ways to Clean the Gulf

2. Dispersants below the surface: This is an untested approach — used for the first time in the BP spill — in which dispersant chemicals are applied at the source of the leak. It is possible that breaking up the oil at this depth allows its more toxic components to dissolve into the water, harming the eggs and larvae of fish and invertebrates.

4. Booms and skimmers: A labor-intensive strategy that rarely recovers more than 5 percent to 10 percent of the oil. (As much as 25 percent can be recovered in sheltered areas with very calm water.) Large volumes of skimmed water often contain little oil. The collected oily water must be stored, cleaned as much as possible and ultimately disposed of.

TCRR NOTE: 75 percent to 90 percent ineffective? Too depressing

Day 46: June 4

Floridians Brace for "Inevitable" Arrival of Oil

The Coast Guard has moved more resources into this area. There are more skimming boats as well as helicopters. The goal here is to remove some of this oil from the surface so that it doesn't get up to the beach. The booms won’t survive the heavy surf.

Observer Reports Insufficient Booms at Grand Isle, LA

One rescuer with International Bird Rescue stated that booms near Grand Isle, LA are vastly ineffective, mostly due to an insufficient amount. Upon returning to shore, this individual stated that the amount of oil he had just witnessed is far more than current amounts of boom is able to handle.

More skimmer boats join Gulf of Mexico oil spill fight

The new boats bring to 158 the number primarily working the Mississippi coast, according to U.S. Coast Guard officials. There are another 220 in Alabama and 112 in Florida. Most boats are seeking to locate and report oil -- be it in sheens, tarballs or other forms -- and the others are skimming, said Lt. Cmdr. Natalie Murphy with the Coast Guard.

"All skimming equipment we have in the entire Gulf Coast is deployed right now," Coast Guard Adm. Thad Allen, the government's point man for the disaster, told the newspaper Friday. "We've actually brought in skimmers from outside the country, from Canada and the Netherlands and other places," Allen said, "and it's not only all hands on deck it's all boom and all skimmers on deck as well."

DHRUC: 4 Mil Ft. Boom Deployed

RESPONSE VESSELS: Total active response vessels: more than 1900. BOOM DATA: Containment boom deployed: more than 2.04 million feet; Containment boom available: more than 747,000 feet; Sorbent boom deployed: more than 2.30 million feet; Sorbent boom available: nearly 2.10 million feet; Total boom deployed: more than 4.34 million feet (regular plus sorbent boom); Total boom available: more than 2.91 million feet (regular plus sorbent boom). OILY WATER RECOVERED: Oily water recovered: nearly 14.97 million gallons. DISPERSANTS: Surface dispersant used: more than 765,000 gallons; Subsea dispersant used: more than 256,000 gallons; Total dispersant used: more than 1,021,000 gallons; Dispersant available: more than 450,000 gallons. PERSONNEL INVOLVED: Overall personnel responding: more than 20,000 personnel responding.

TCRR NOTE: Since the doc number for June 3 is the lowest to date (543103), and this doc number for June 4 is the highest to date (589583), we think the June 4 update is the first likely candidate for a "real time" doc to appear in the current format at the official response website. All others would appear to be "archive" materials such as the updates that have appeard since April 29 at the DHRUC facebook page.

Day 45: June 3

Ocean currents likely to carry oil along Atlantic coast

BOULDER—A detailed computer modeling study released today indicates that oil from the massive spill in the Gulf of Mexico might soon extend along thousands of miles of the Atlantic coast and open ocean as early as this summer. The modeling results are captured in a series of dramatic animations produced by the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) and collaborators.

The model simulations show that a liquid released in the surface ocean at the spill site is likely to slowly spread as it is mixed by the ocean currents until it is entrained in the Loop Current. At that point, speeds pick up to about 40 miles per day, and when the liquid enters the Atlantic’s Gulf Stream it can travel at speeds up to about 100 miles per day, or 3,000 miles per month.

Oil's here; where are the skimmers? Alabama Gov. says boats waiting Coast Guard's OK

Meanwhile, Gov. Bob Riley complained that there are hundreds of private boats ready to get out in the waters with skimmers to try to protect the shoreline from oil. But they're waiting on authorization from the U.S. Coast Guard to be able to do so.

Master Chief Petty Officer Pete Capelotti said that though people are getting nervous as they see oil clumps come ashore, it's not time yet to deploy all of the skimmers.

BP PLC has cleared about 275 boats through the Vessels of Opportunity program to skim and look for oil from Louisiana to Florida, said Coast Guard Lt. Cmdr. Natalie Murphy.

A plan to cordon off the mouth of Mobile Bay with ocean-grade boom failed and now, essentially, all that is left are a series of 18-inch-deep booms along important estuaries.

Officials are estimating that between 500,000 to 1 million gallons of oil are spewing into the Gulf each day in what has already been declared the worst oil disaster in U.S. waters.

Note: 1 million/day times 42 days (as of June 1)=42 million gallons to be skimmed (Valdez spilled 10.8 million gallons)

Sure-fire cure for spewing well? Drilling

To be prepared, workers moved in booms and a skimmer to try to catch the oil before it reached the shore. Four Coast Guard helicopters were surveying the area to guide the skimmers to capture the oil before it reached Pensacola’s fragile wetlands along the intracoastal waterways, notably the Perdido and Pensacola passes.

Spotters earlier Thursday detected the vanguard of the spill some six miles from Navarre Pier in Santa Rosa County. The primary plume itself was 30 miles off Pensacola and 330 miles from St. Petersburg. Louisiana was increasingly turning to sand barriers to protect its coast.

Florida was so far emphasizing booms and skimmers in its coastal protection strategy. On Wednesday, Florida said it had a quarter-million feet of boom deployed in the state.

Hightower: Who the Hell is in Charge Here?

New oil skimmer material has triple the oil removal capacity to help the Gulf spill

Clean-up activities that create tar balls "may in fact be making the disaster worse," according to Abanaki president Tom Hobson. Unlike other oil skimmer disk materials, Fuzzy2 has a hairy surface that greatly increases its surface area, making it highly efficient at removing oil from the water's surface.

DHRUC: Million Gals Dispersant Total; Mil New Gals Oil-Water Recovered (14.8 mil)

The Unified Area Command continues to work closely together with the Responsible Party and Federal, State, local and tribal partners in anticipating requirements, identifying response options, and rapidly providing response support. The following is a synopsis of our daily response efforts: Total active response vessels: more than 1,900; Containment boom deployed: more than 2 million feet; Containment boom available: more than 654,000 feet; Sorbent boom deployed: more than 2.2 million feet; Sorbent boom available: nearly 1.7 million feet; Total boom deployed: more than 4.2 million feet (regular plus sorbent boom); Total boom available: more than 2.4 million feet (regular plus sorbent boom); Oily water recovered: nearly 14.8 million gallons; Surface dispersant used: more than 759,000 gallons; Subsea dispersant used: more than 245,000 gallons; Total dispersant used: more than 1,005,000 gallons; Dispersant available: more than 455,000 gallons; Overall personnel responding: more than 20,000. 17 staging areas are in place and ready to protect sensitive shorelines. These areas include: Dauphin Island, Ala., Orange Beach, Ala., Theodore, Ala., Panama City, Fla., Pensacola, Fla., Port St. Joe, Fla., St. Marks, Fla., Amelia, La., Cocodrie, La., Grand Isle, La., Shell Beach, La., Slidell, La., St. Mary, La., Venice, La., Biloxi, Miss., Pascagoula, Miss., Pass Christian, Miss., For updated NOAA trajectory maps, click here. Hotlines:

TCRR NOTE: Doc number 543103 is earliest in sequence of all listings below from "By the Numbers" website format at official response website. Link to NOAA is new?

Day 44: June 2

Local fishermen block mouth of Bayou to protest BP hiring, payment practices

At issue, according to those there, is that recreational boat owners are being hired before those who make their livelihoods solely from fishing local waters. When asked about the protest, BP officials emailed this statement: "We are adjusting the vessels of opportunity program to give priority to commercial vessels and fisherman. We are working diligently to resolve any issues VOO operators may have."

The owner of the boat with the orange message, Brent Buchanan, was taken from the docks in handcuffs by local police about an hour after the protest began at 5 a.m. His two sons watched from a small pier a few feet away. Buchanan said later he was asked to bust up the protest and refused. So he was ticketed for interfering with police and eventually released.

Oil Enzyme Research Ignored by BP-led Authorities in Gulf of Mexico

I spoke to folks from the state Coastal Restoration department. My father retired from that department, and they knew him. I asked them why hasn't the state tapped into the vast wealth of research and information that's already been conducted by LSU on oil spills and natural enzymes and such that can break down the oil and get rid of it out of the marsh. They replied they asked the same question in a meeting a couple of weeks ago, and didn't get an answer.

As anxiety rises over oil spill, crews try to limit destruction

Each morning, more than 20 boats loaded with inflatable boom and nearly 300 workers depart from Venice's docks, says Lt. Michael Dixon, a Coast Guard supervisor. The workers then spend their days skimming and collecting oil from contaminated shoreline nearby — all while enduring snake bites, heat exhaustion, staph infections and other hazards, Dixon says.

DHRUC: 5 more burns; 200 more vessels (1,900); 2 mil ft containment boom

By the Numbers to Date: The administration has authorized 17,500 National Guard troops from Gulf Coast states to participate in the response to the BP oil spill. More than 20,000 personnel are currently responding to protect the shoreline and wildlife and cleanup vital coastlines. More than 1,900 vessels are responding on site, including skimmers, tugs, barges, and recovery vessels to assist in containment and cleanup efforts—in addition to dozens of aircraft, remotely operated vehicles, and multiple mobile offshore drilling units. Approximately 2 million feet of containment boom and 2.1 million feet of sorbent boom have been deployed to contain the spill—and approximately 625,000 feet of containment boom and 1.8 million feet of sorbent boom are available. Approximately 13.8 million gallons of an oil-water mix have been recovered.Approximately 993,000 gallons of total dispersant have been deployed—755,000 on the surface and 238,000 subsea. More than 364,000 gallons are available. 125 controlled burns have been conducted, efficiently removing a total of more than 3.2 million gallons of oil from the open water in an effort to protect shoreline and wildlife. 17 staging areas are in place and ready to protect sensitive shorelines, including: Dauphin Island, Ala., Orange Beach, Ala., Theodore, Ala., Panama City, Fla., Pensacola, Fla., Port St. Joe, Fla., St. Marks, Fla., Amelia, La., Cocodrie, La., Grand Isle, La., Shell Beach, La., Slidell, La., St. Mary, La.; Venice, La., Biloxi, Miss., Pascagoula, Miss., and Pass Christian, Miss. Hotlines:

TCRR NOTE: Flatline in oil-water recovery. More burns. Hotline info new?

Day 43: June 1

Dutch Finally Succeed in Lending Sweeping Arm Skimmers to Gulf Coast Effort

Dutch companies that manufacture the sweeping arm system first contacted BP officials April 23, three days after the Deepwater Horizon explosion, according to Sjon Huisman, an adviser with the Netherlands’s Ministry of Transport, Public Works and Water Management, who spoke by phone from his office in The Hague Tuesday.

After receiving little reply, the companies turned to his department for help in reaching out to the US State Department, Huisman says.

DHRUC: 17,500 Nat. Guard Authorized; 300,000 gals oily water (13.8 mil); 2.8 (mil?) gals burned

By the Numbers to Date: The administration has authorized 17,500 National Guard troops from Gulf Coast states to participate in the response to the BP oil spill. More than 20,000 personnel are currently responding to protect the shoreline and wildlife and cleanup vital coastlines. More than 1,700 vessels are responding on site, including skimmers, tugs, barges, and recovery vessels to assist in containment and cleanup efforts—in addition to dozens of aircraft, remotely operated vehicles, and multiple mobile offshore drilling units. Approximately 1.96 million feet of containment boom and 2 million feet of sorbent boom have been deployed to contain the spill—and approximately 620,000 feet of containment boom and 1.8 million feet of sorbent boom are available. Approximately 13.8 million gallons of an oil-water mix have been recovered. Approximately 980,000 gallons of total dispersant have been deployed—755,000 on the surface and 225,000 subsea. More than 420,000 gallons are available. More than 120 controlled burns have been conducted, efficiently removing a total of more than 2.8 gallons of oil from the open water in an effort to protect shoreline and wildlife. 17 staging areas are in place and ready to protect sensitive shorelines, including: Dauphin Island, Ala., Orange Beach, Ala., Theodore, Ala., Panama City, Fla., Pensacola, Fla., Port St. Joe, Fla., St. Marks, Fla., Amelia, La., Cocodrie, La., Grand Isle, La., Shell Beach, La., Slidell, La., St. Mary, La.; Venice, La., Biloxi, Miss., Pascagoula, Miss., and Pass Christian, Miss.

TCRR NOTE: First mention of burn effectiveness.

Day 42: May 31

DHRUC: 300 more vessels (1,700); 400,000 gals oily water (13.5 mil)

By the Numbers to Date: More than 20,000 personnel are currently responding to protect the shoreline and wildlife and cleanup vital coastlines. More than 1,700 vessels are responding on site, including skimmers, tugs, barges, and recovery vessels to assist in containment and cleanup efforts—in addition to dozens of aircraft, remotely operated vehicles, and multiple mobile offshore drilling units. Approximately 1.95 million feet of containment boom and 1.85 million feet of sorbent boom have been deployed to contain the spill—and approximately 610,000 feet of containment boom and 1.8 million feet of sorbent boom are available. Approximately 13.5 million gallons of an oil-water mix have been recovered. Approximately 950,000 gallons of total dispersant have been deployed—740,000 on the surface and 210,000 subsea. More than 430,000 gallons are available. 17 staging areas are in place and ready to protect sensitive shorelines, including: Dauphin Island, Ala., Orange Beach, Ala., Theodore, Ala., Panama City, Fla., Pensacola, Fla., Port St. Joe, Fla., St. Marks, Fla., Amelia, La., Cocodrie, La., Grand Isle, La., Shell Beach, La., Slidell, La., St. Mary, La.; Venice, La., Biloxi, Miss., Pascagoula, Miss., and Pass Christian, Miss.

Day 41: May 30

DHRUC: 1 mil gal day for oily water recovery (13.1 mil); Subsea dispersant reaches 200,000 gals

By the Numbers to Date: More than 20,000 personnel are currently responding to protect the shoreline and wildlife and cleanup vital coastlines. More than 1,400 vessels are responding on site, including skimmers, tugs, barges, and recovery vessels to assist in containment and cleanup efforts—in addition to dozens of aircraft, remotely operated vehicles, and multiple mobile offshore drilling units. Approximately 1.9 million feet of containment boom and 1.85 million feet of sorbent boom have been deployed to contain the spill—and approximately 500,000 feet of containment boom and 1.5 million feet of sorbent boom are available. Approximately 13.1 million gallons of an oil-water mix have been recovered. Approximately 920,000 gallons of total dispersant have been deployed—720,000 on the surface and 200,000 subsea. More than 430,000 gallons are available. 17 staging areas are in place and ready to protect sensitive shorelines, including: Dauphin Island, Ala., Orange Beach, Ala., Theodore, Ala., Panama City, Fla., Pensacola, Fla., Port St. Joe, Fla., St. Marks, Fla., Amelia, La., Cocodrie, La., Grand Isle, La., Shell Beach, La., Slidell, La., St. Mary, La.; Venice, La., Biloxi, Miss., Pascagoula, Miss., and Pass Christian, Miss.

TCRR NOTE: Average since Day 1: 319,000 gals/day.

Day 40: May 29

DHRUC: 300,000 gals oily water (12.1 mil)

By the Numbers to Date: Personnel were quickly deployed and more than 20,000 are currently responding to protect the shoreline and wildlife. More than 1,400 vessels are responding on site, including skimmers, tugs, barges, and recovery vessels to assist in containment and cleanup efforts—in addition to dozens of aircraft, remotely operated vehicles, and multiple mobile offshore drilling units. Approximately 1.9 million feet of containment boom and 1.8 million feet of sorbent boom have been deployed to contain the spill—and approximately 390,000 feet of containment boom and 1.27 million feet of sorbent boom are available. Approximately 12.1 million gallons of an oil-water mix have been recovered. Approximately 910,000 gallons of total dispersant have been deployed—720,000 on the surface and 180,000 subsea. More than 450,000 gallons are available. 17 staging areas are in place and ready to protect sensitive shorelines, including: Dauphin Island, Ala., Orange Beach, Ala., Theodore, Ala., Panama City, Fla., Pensacola, Fla., Port St. Joe, Fla., St. Marks, Fla., Amelia, La., Cocodrie, La., Grand Isle, La., Shell Beach, La., Slidell, La., St. Mary, La.; Venice, La., Biloxi, Miss., Pascagoula, Miss., and Pass Christian, Miss.

Day 39: May 28

DHRUC: 300,000 gals oily water (11.8 mil)

By the Numbers to Date: Personnel were quickly deployed and approximately 20,000 are currently responding to protect the shoreline and wildlife. Approximately 1,400 vessels are responding on site, including skimmers, tugs, barges, and recovery vessels to assist in containment and cleanup efforts—in addition to dozens of aircraft, remotely operated vehicles, and multiple mobile offshore drilling units. Approximately 1.9 million feet of containment boom and 1.5 million feet of sorbent boom have been deployed to contain the spill—and approximately 250,000 feet of containment boom and 950,000 feet of sorbent boom are available. Approximately 11.8 million gallons of an oil-water mix have been recovered. Approximately 870,000 gallons of total dispersant have been deployed—700,000 on the surface and 170,000 subsea. More than 400,000 gallons are available. 17 staging areas are in place and ready to protect sensitive shorelines, including: Dauphin Island, Ala., Orange Beach, Ala., Theodore, Ala., Panama City, Fla., Pensacola, Fla., Port St. Joe, Fla., St. Marks, Fla., Amelia, La., Cocodrie, La., Grand Isle, La., Shell Beach, La., Slidell, La., St. Mary, La.; Venice, La., Biloxi, Miss., Pascagoula, Miss., and Pass Christian, Miss.

TCRR NOTE: In terms of document number (in the final slash of the URL) this shares 590 prefix with April 20 - May 4. Other docs from May and some from early June share 588 prefix indicating earlier sequence.

Day 38: May 27

DHRUC: Half mil gals oily water (11.5 mil); Subsea dispersant totals 150,000 gals

By the Numbers to Date: Personnel were quickly deployed and approximately 20,000 are currently responding to protect the shoreline and wildlife. Approximately 1,300 vessels are responding on site, including skimmers, tugs, barges, and recovery vessels to assist in containment and cleanup efforts—in addition to dozens of aircraft, remotely operated vehicles, and multiple mobile offshore drilling units. More than 1.88 million feet of containment boom and 1.25 million feet of sorbent boom have been deployed to contain the spill—and approximately 280,000 feet of containment boom and 1 million feet of sorbent boom are available. Approximately 11.5 million gallons of an oil-water mix have been recovered. Approximately 850,000 gallons of total dispersant have been deployed—700,000 on the surface and 150,000 subsea. More than 400,000 gallons are available. 17 staging areas are in place and ready to protect sensitive shorelines, including: Dauphin Island, Ala., Orange Beach, Ala., Theodore, Ala., Panama City, Fla., Pensacola, Fla., Port St. Joe, Fla., St. Marks, Fla., Amelia, La., Cocodrie, La., Grand Isle, La., Shell Beach, La., Slidell, La., St. Mary, La.; Venice, La., Biloxi, Miss., Pascagoula, Miss., and Pass Christian, Miss.K

TCRR NOTE: 10-day marker since May 17 first mention of subsea dispersant.

Flow Rate Group Provides Preliminary Best Estimate Of Oil Flowing from BP Oil Well

USGS Director Dr. Marcia McNutt today announced that the National Incident Command’s Flow Rate Technical Group (FRTG) has developed an independent, preliminary estimate of the amount of oil flowing from BP’s leaking oil well. In making the announcement, Dr. McNutt, who is the chair of the FRTG, established by Admiral Thad Allen, the National Incident Commander, emphasized that since day one, the Administration’s deployments of resources and tactics in response to the BP oil spill have been based on a worst-case, catastrophic scenario, and have not been contained by flow rate estimates. The only range of flow rates that is consistent with all 3 of the methods considered by the FRTG is 12,000 to 19,000 barrels per day. Higher flow rates are consistent with the data considered by one of the teams. FRTG estimated (on May 17) that between 130,000 and 270,000 barrels of oil are on the surface of the Gulf of Mexico.

TCRR NOTE: Take a mid-point 16,000 bbls/day times 42 gals/bbl = 672,000 gals/day; take another mid-point 200,000 bbls at surface times 42 = 8.4 mil gals (Day 28: May 17).

Day 37: May 26

DHRUC: 100 new vessels (1,300)

By the Numbers to Date: Personnel were quickly deployed and more than 20,000 are currently responding to protect the shoreline and wildlife. Approximately 1,300 vessels are responding on site, including skimmers, tugs, barges, and recovery vessels to assist in containment and cleanup efforts—in addition to dozens of aircraft, remotely operated vehicles, and multiple mobile offshore drilling units. More than 1.85 million feet of containment boom and 1.25 million feet of sorbent boom have been deployed to contain the spill—and approximately 300,000 feet of containment boom and 1 million feet of sorbent boom are available. Approximately 11 million gallons of an oil-water mix have been recovered. Approximately 840,000 gallons of total dispersant have been deployed—700,000 on the surface and 140,000 subsea. More than 380,000 gallons are available. 17 staging areas are in place and ready to protect sensitive shorelines, including: Dauphin Island, Ala., Orange Beach, Ala., Theodore, Ala., Panama City, Fla., Pensacola, Fla., Port St. Joe, Fla., St. Marks, Fla., Amelia, La., Cocodrie, La., Grand Isle, La., Shell Beach, La., Slidell, La., St. Mary, La.; Venice, La., Biloxi, Miss., Pascagoula, Miss., and Pass Christian, Miss.

TCRR NOTE: flatline day?

Day 36: May 25

DHRUC: 200,000 gals oily water (11 mil)

By the Numbers to Date: Personnel were quickly deployed and more than 22,000 are currently responding to protect the shoreline and wildlife. More than 1,200 vessels are responding on site, including skimmers, tugs, barges, and recovery vessels to assist in containment and cleanup efforts—in addition to dozens of aircraft, remotely operated vehicles, and multiple mobile offshore drilling units. More than 1.8 million feet of containment boom and 990,000 feet of sorbent boom have been deployed to contain the spill—and approximately 325,000 feet of containment boom and 1 million feet of sorbent boom are available. Approximately 11 million gallons of an oil-water mix have been recovered. Approximately 830,000 gallons of total dispersant have been deployed—700,000 on the surface and 130,000 subsea. More than 360,000 gallons are available. 17 staging areas are in place and ready to protect sensitive shorelines, including: Dauphin Island, Ala., Orange Beach, Ala., Theodore, Ala., Panama City, Fla., Pensacola, Fla., Port St. Joe, Fla., St. Marks, Fla., Amelia, La., Cocodrie, La., Grand Isle, La., Shell Beach, La., Slidell, La., St. Mary, La.; Venice, La., Biloxi, Miss., Pascagoula, Miss., and Pass Christian, Miss.

TCRR NOTE: Average since Day 1: 305,000 gals/day.

Day 35: May 24

DHRUC: 600,000 gals oily water (10.8 mil)

By the Numbers to Date: Personnel were quickly deployed and more than 22,000 are currently responding to protect the shoreline and wildlife. More than 1,200 vessels are responding on site, including skimmers, tugs, barges, and recovery vessels to assist in containment and cleanup efforts—in addition to dozens of aircraft, remotely operated vehicles, and multiple mobile offshore drilling units. More than 1.75 million feet of containment boom and 990,000 feet of sorbent boom have been deployed to contain the spill—and approximately 380,000 feet of containment boom and 1 million feet of sorbent boom are available. Approximately 10.8 million gallons of an oil-water mix have been recovered. Approximately 815,000 gallons of total dispersant have been deployed—700,000 on the surface and 115,000 subsea. More than 300,000 gallons are available. 17 staging areas are in place and ready to protect sensitive shorelines, including: Dauphin Island, Ala., Orange Beach, Ala., Theodore, Ala., Panama City, Fla., Pensacola, Fla., Port St. Joe, Fla., St. Marks, Fla., Amelia, La., Cocodrie, La., Grand Isle, La., Shell Beach, La., Slidell, La., St. Mary, La.; Venice, La., Biloxi, Miss., Pascagoula, Miss., and Pass Christian, Miss.

Day 34: May 23

DHRUC: 500,000 gals oily water (10.2 mil)

By the Numbers to Date: Personnel were quickly deployed and more than 22,000 are currently responding to protect the shoreline and wildlife. More than 1,150 vessels are responding on site, including skimmers, tugs, barges, and recovery vessels to assist in containment and cleanup efforts—in addition to dozens of aircraft, remotely operated vehicles, and multiple mobile offshore drilling units. More than 1.73 million feet of containment boom and 730,000 feet of sorbent boom have been deployed to contain the spill—and approximately 275,000 feet of containment boom and 1.25 million feet of sorbent boom are available. Approximately 10.2 million gallons of an oil-water mix have been recovered. Approximately 785,000 gallons of total dispersant have been deployed—685,000 on the surface and 100,000 subsea. More than 340,000 gallons are available. 17 staging areas are in place and ready to protect sensitive shorelines, including: Dauphin Island, Ala., Orange Beach, Ala., Theodore, Ala., Panama City, Fla., Pensacola, Fla., Port St. Joe, Fla., St. Marks, Fla., Amelia, La., Cocodrie, La., Grand Isle, La., Shell Beach, La., Slidell, La., St. Mary, La.; Venice, La., Biloxi, Miss., Pascagoula, Miss., and Pass Christian, Miss.

TCRR NOTE: Another 2,000 Responder drop? Or another typo? Average since Day 1: 300,000 gals/day.

Day 33: May 22

DHRUC: 800,000 gals oily water (9.7 mil)

By the Numbers to Date: Personnel were quickly deployed and approximately 24,900 are currently responding to protect the shoreline and wildlife. More than 1,100 vessels are responding on site, including skimmers, tugs, barges, and recovery vessels to assist in containment and cleanup efforts—in addition to dozens of aircraft, remotely operated vehicles, and multiple mobile offshore drilling units. More than 1.52 million feet of containment boom and 560,000 feet of sorbent boom have been deployed to contain the spill—and approximately 310,000 feet of containment boom and 1.27 million feet of sorbent boom are available. Approximately 9.7 million gallons of an oil-water mix have been recovered. Approximately 715,000 gallons of total dispersant have been deployed—630,000 on the surface and 85,000 subsea. More than 375,000 gallons are available. 17 staging areas are in place and ready to protect sensitive shorelines, including: Dauphin Island, Ala., Orange Beach, Ala., Theodore, Ala., Panama City, Fla., Pensacola, Fla., Port St. Joe, Fla., St. Marks, Fla., Amelia, La., Cocodrie, La., Grand Isle, La., Shell Beach, La., Slidell, La., St. Mary, La.; Venice, La., Biloxi, Miss., Pascagoula, Miss., and Pass Christian, Miss.

Day 32: May 21

DHRUC: 600,000 gals oily water (8.9 mil)

By the Numbers to Date: Personnel were quickly deployed and approximately 24,000 are currently responding to protect the shoreline and wildlife. More than 1,100 vessels are responding on site, including skimmers, tugs, barges, and recovery vessels to assist in containment and cleanup efforts—in addition to dozens of aircraft, remotely operated vehicles, and multiple mobile offshore drilling units. More than 1.46 million feet of containment boom and 560,000 feet of sorbent boom have been deployed to contain the spill—and approximately 370,000 feet of containment boom and 1.28 million feet of sorbent boom are available. More than 8.9 million gallons of an oil-water mix have been recovered. Approximately 670,000 gallons of total dispersant have been deployed—600,000 on the surface and 70,000 subsea. More than 340,000 gallons are available. 17 staging areas are in place and ready to protect sensitive shorelines, including: Dauphin Island, Ala., Orange Beach, Ala., Theodore, Ala., Panama City, Fla., Pensacola, Fla., Port St. Joe, Fla., St. Marks, Fla., Amelia, La., Cocodrie, La., Grand Isle, La., Shell Beach, La., Slidell, La., St. Mary, La.; Venice, La., Biloxi, Miss., Pascagoula, Miss., and Pass Christian, Miss.

Day 31: May 20

Gulf oil spill: Kevin Costner donates 'Ocean Therapy' invention to clean oil from sea; BP OK's tests

Costner has 300 of his Ocean Therapy machines in various sizes. The largest, at 2 1/2 tons, is able to clean water at a rate of 200 gallons a minute - faster than the well is leaking . . .

DHRUC: Totals: 1,000 Vessels - 24,000 Responders - 8.3 mil gals oily water

By the Numbers to Date: Personnel were quickly deployed and more than 24,000 are currently responding to protect the shoreline and wildlife. More than 1,000 vessels are responding on site, including skimmers, tugs, barges, and recovery vessels to assist in containment and cleanup efforts—in addition to dozens of aircraft, remotely operated vehicles, and multiple mobile offshore drilling units. More than 1.43 million feet of containment boom and 560,000 feet of sorbent boom have been deployed to contain the spill—and approximately 370,000 feet of containment boom and 1.28 million feet of sorbent boom are available. Approximately 8.3 million gallons of an oil-water mix have been recovered. Approximately 655,000 gallons of total dispersant have been deployed—600,000 on the surface and 55,000 subsea. More than 340,000 gallons are available. 17 staging areas are in place and ready to protect sensitive shorelines, including: Dauphin Island, Ala., Orange Beach, Ala., Theodore, Ala., Panama City, Fla., Pensacola, Fla., Port St. Joe, Fla., St. Marks, Fla., Amelia, La., Cocodrie, La., Grand Isle, La., Shell Beach, La., Slidell, La., St. Mary, La.; Venice, La., Biloxi, Miss., Pascagoula, Miss., and Pass Christian, Miss.

TCRR NOTE: One month marker. Milestone numbers. Day's oily water collection at 400,000 gals. Average since Day 1: 268,000 gals/day.

Day 30: May 19

DHRUC: 300,000 gals oily water (7.9 mil)

By the Numbers to Date: Personnel were quickly deployed and approximately 20,000 are currently responding to protect the shoreline and wildlife. More than 970 vessels are responding on site, including skimmers, tugs, barges, and recovery vessels to assist in containment and cleanup efforts—in addition to dozens of aircraft, remotely operated vehicles, and multiple mobile offshore drilling units. More than 1.38 million feet of containment boom and 530,000 feet of sorbent boom have been deployed to contain the spill—and approximately 380,000 feet of containment boom and 845,000 feet of sorbent boom are available. Approximately 7.9 million gallons of an oil-water mix have been recovered. Approximately 655,000 gallons of total dispersant have been deployed—600,000 on the surface and 55,000 subsea. More than 310,000 gallons are available. 17 staging areas are in place and ready to protect sensitive shorelines, including: Dauphin Island, Ala., Orange Beach, Ala., Theodore, Ala., Panama City, Fla., Pensacola, Fla., Port St. Joe, Fla., St. Marks, Fla., Amelia, La., Cocodrie, La., Grand Isle, La., Shell Beach, La., Slidell, La., St. Mary, La.; Venice, La., Biloxi, Miss., Pascagoula, Miss., and Pass Christian, Miss.

TCRR NOTE: Recovery of oily water swings from 1 mil to 300,000 gals.

Day 29: May 18

DHRUC: 200 Vessels added (950), 1 mil gals oily water - 20,000 Responders,

By the Numbers to Date: Personnel were quickly deployed and more than 20,000 are currently responding to protect the shoreline and wildlife. More than 950 vessels are responding on site, including skimmers, tugs, barges, and recovery vessels to assist in containment and cleanup efforts—in addition to dozens of aircraft, remotely operated vehicles, and multiple mobile offshore drilling units. More than 1.36 million feet of containment boom and 480,000 feet of sorbent boom have been deployed to contain the spill—and approximately 350,000 feet of containment boom and 800,000 feet of sorbent boom are available. Approximately 7.6 million gallons of an oil-water mix have been recovered. Approximately 640,000 gallons of total dispersant have been deployed—590,000 on the surface and 53,000 subsea. More than 300,000 gallons are available. 17 staging areas are in place and ready to protect sensitive shorelines, including: Dauphin Island, Ala., Orange Beach, Ala., Theodore, Ala., Panama City, Fla., Pensacola, Fla., Port St. Joe, Fla., St. Marks, Fla., Amelia, La., Cocodrie, La., Grand Isle, La., Shell Beach, La., Slidell, La., St. Mary, La.; Venice, La., Biloxi, Miss., Pascagoula, Miss., and Pass Christian, Miss.

TCRR NOTE: Another mil gal day for oily water recovery. Significant vessel increase (with 1,000 new Responders, assuming May 17 number a typo).

Day 28: May 17

DHRUC: First Subsea Dispersant Number; Responder Typo? 300,000 gals oily water (6.6 mil)

By the Numbers to Date: Personnel were quickly deployed and more than 17,000 are currently responding to protect the shoreline and wildlife. More than 750 vessels are responding on site, including skimmers, tugs, barges, and recovery vessels to assist in containment and cleanup efforts—in addition to dozens of aircraft, remotely operated vehicles, and multiple mobile offshore drilling units. More than 1.3 million feet of containment boom and 400,000 feet of sorbent boom have been deployed to contain the spill—and approximately 360,000 feet of containment boom and 750,000 feet of sorbent boom are available. Approximately 6.6 million gallons of an oil-water mix have been recovered. Approximately 625,000 gallons of total dispersant have been deployed—580,000 on the surface and 45,000 subsea. More than 390,000 gallons are available. 17 staging areas are in place and ready to protect sensitive shorelines, including: Dauphin Island, Ala., Orange Beach, Ala., Theodore, Ala., Panama City, Fla., Pensacola, Fla., Port St. Joe, Fla., St. Marks, Fla., Amelia, La., Cocodrie, La., Grand Isle, La., Shell Beach, La., Slidell, La., St. Mary, La.; Venice, La., Biloxi, Miss., Pascagoula, Miss., and Pass Christian, Miss.

TCRR NOTE: 2,000 fewer Respondents? First mention of subsea dispersant. Also see Day 38: May 27 above. This was the day that a US govt team estimated (using the midpoint of 200,000 bbls) about 8.4 mil gals of oil at surface (vs 6.6 mil gals oily water collected to date). Underwater dispersants first listed on day that surface measures were being officially estimated. By Day 28 according to the government's own standards, the oil collection effort was collecting less than half the need.

Day 27: May 16

Oil spill may cause boom in boom business

But, so far, the folks at Orchard Park’s Applied Fabric Technologies Inc., which makes a variety of oil-spill cleanup equipment, have received nothing more than a lot of phone calls. “There’s a lot going on,” John O’Brien, AFTI’s marketing director, said Friday, “but so far there have been no purchase orders to propel us into action.” The chances that all the talk will turn into orders for AFTI are strong, because the company, a subsidiary of Denmark’s Desmi Ro-Clean, basically exists to clean up the oil and shipping industries’ messes. O’Brien said AFTI has employees on the site of the spill assessing the situation.

DHRUC: 1,500 Responders added (19,000); 300,000 gals oily water (6.3 mil)

By the Numbers to Date: Personnel were quickly deployed and more than 19,000 are currently responding to protect the shoreline and wildlife. More than 650 vessels are responding on site, including skimmers, tugs, barges, and recovery vessels to assist in containment and cleanup efforts—in addition to dozens of aircraft, remotely operated vehicles, and multiple mobile offshore drilling units. More than 1.25 million feet of containment boom and 440,000 feet of sorbent boom have been deployed to contain the spill—and approximately 285,000 feet of containment boom and 900,000 feet of sorbent boom are available. Approximately 6.3 million gallons of an oil-water mix have been recovered. Approximately 600,000 gallons of dispersant have been deployed. More than 280,000 gallons are available. 17 staging areas are in place and ready to protect sensitive shorelines, including: Dauphin Island, Ala., Orange Beach, Ala., Theodore, Ala., Panama City, Fla., Pensacola, Fla., Port St. Joe, Fla., St. Marks, Fla., Amelia, La., Cocodrie, La., Grand Isle, La., Shell Beach, La., Slidell, La., St. Mary, La.; Venice, La., Biloxi, Miss., Pascagoula, Miss., and Pass Christian, Miss.

Day 26: May 15

Giant Plumes of Oil Forming Under the Gulf

“The answer is no to that,” a BP spokesman, Tom Mueller, said on Saturday. “We’re not going to take any extra efforts now to calculate flow there at this point. It’s not relevant to the response effort, and it might even detract from the response effort.” The undersea plumes may go a long way toward explaining the discrepancy between the flow estimates, suggesting that much of the oil emerging from the well could be lingering far below the sea surface.

DHRUC: Another Million Gals oily water (6 mil) and 4,500 Responders added (17,500)

By the Numbers to Date: Personnel were quickly deployed and approximately 17,500 are currently responding to protect the shoreline and wildlife. More than 600 vessels are responding on site, including skimmers, tugs, barges, and recovery vessels to assist in containment and cleanup efforts—in addition to dozens of aircraft, remotely operated vehicles, and multiple mobile offshore drilling units. More than 1.25 million feet of containment boom and 415,000 feet of sorbent boom have been deployed to contain the spill—and approximately 270,000 feet of containment boom and 900,000 feet of sorbent boom are available. More than 6 million gallons of an oil-water mix have been recovered. Approximately 560,000 gallons of dispersant have been deployed. More than 260,000 gallons are available. 17 staging areas are in place and ready to protect sensitive shorelines, including: Dauphin Island, Ala., Orange Beach, Ala., Theodore, Ala., Panama City, Fla., Pensacola, Fla., Port St. Joe, Fla., St. Marks, Fla., Amelia, La., Cocodrie, La., Grand Isle, La., Shell Beach, La., Slidell, La., St. Mary, La.; Venice, La., Biloxi, Miss., Pascagoula, Miss., and Pass Christian, Miss.

TCRR NOTE: first breakdown of boom deployment into "container" and "sorbent". Half million gals oily water per day since last report of May 13. Average since Day 1: 230,000 gals/day.

Day 25: May 14

Spill-rate lowballing reflects badly on government cleanup oversight

For weeks, government officials, politicians, oil industry executives, and journalists -- including me (Tom Philpott, Grist) -- have been repeating the "fact" that oil is gushing from the Deepwater Horizon leak at the rate of 5,000 barrels per day.

The 5,000-barrel number originally came from analysis of the spill at the ocean surface by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in late April. Before that, BP had been claiming its best estimate was a flow of of just 1,000 barrels.

According to NPR, much more accurate assessments of a leak's rate can be made by analyzing film footage at the wellhead. And that's how the expert contacted by NPR made his estimate: "Steven Wereley, an associate professor of mechanical engineering at Purdue University, analyzed videotape of the seafloor gusher using a technique called particle image velocimetry. . . . He made a few simple calculations and came up with an astonishing value for the rate of the oil spill: 70,000 barrels a day -- much higher than the official estimate of 5,000 barrels a day. The method is accurate to a degree of plus or minus 20 percent.

NOTE: 42 gallons of oil per barrel times 70,000 bbls = 2.94 million gals/day.

U.S. approves use of subsea dispersants to battle oil slick

NEW ORLEANS -- U.S. officials on Friday approved the use of controversial subsea chemical dispersants to battle a massive oil spill gushing out of a ruptured offshore well deep in the Gulf of Mexico. "This was not a decision that was made lightly," said U.S. Coast Guard Rear Admiral Mary Landry. Landry told reporters that the approval was only granted after a team of experts analyzed the results of three tests of subsea dispersant use.

DHRUC: No "By the Numbers" Report Today

No data available.

Day 24: May 13

DHRUC: 1 Mil Gals Oily Water (5 mil)

By the Numbers to Date: Personnel were quickly deployed and approximately 13,000 are currently responding to protect the shoreline and wildlife. More than 520 vessels are responding on site, including skimmers, tugs, barges, and recovery vessels to assist in containment and cleanup efforts—in addition to dozens of aircraft, remotely operated vehicles, and multiple mobile offshore drilling units. More than 1.4 million feet of boom (regular and sorbent) have been deployed to contain the spill—and approximately 1 million feet are available. Approximately 5 million gallons of an oil-water mix have been recovered. Approximately 476,000 gallons of dispersant have been deployed. More than 217,000 gallons are available. 14 staging areas have been set up to protect vital shoreline in all potentially affected Gulf Coast states (Biloxi, Miss., Pascagoula, Miss., Pensacola, Fla., Panama City, Fla., Dauphin Island, Ala., Grand Isle, La., Shell Beach, La., Slidell, La., Venice, La., Orange Beach, Ala., Theodore, Ala., Pass Christian, Miss., Amelia, La., and Cocodrie, La.).

TCRR NOTE: 1 mil gals oily water today. Average since Day 1: 208,000 gals/day.

Day 23: May 12

DHRUC: 50 more vessels (510); 400,000 gals oily water (4 mil)

By the Numbers to Date: Personnel were quickly deployed and approximately 13,000 are currently responding to protect the shoreline and wildlife. More than 510 vessels are responding on site, including skimmers, tugs, barges, and recovery vessels to assist in containment and cleanup efforts—in addition to dozens of aircraft, remotely operated vehicles, and multiple mobile offshore drilling units. Approximately 1.5 million feet of boom (regular and sorbent) have been deployed to contain the spill—and approximately 1.5 million feet are available. Approximately 4 million gallons of an oil-water mix have been recovered. Approximately 436,000 gallons of dispersant have been deployed. More than 120,000 gallons are available. 14 staging areas have been set up to protect vital shoreline in all potentially affected Gulf Coast states (Biloxi, Miss., Pascagoula, Miss., Pensacola, Fla., Panama City, Fla., Dauphin Island, Ala., Grand Isle, La., Shell Beach, La., Slidell, La., Venice, La., Orange Beach, Ala., Theodore, Ala., Pass Christian, Miss., Amelia, La., and Cocodrie, La.).

TCRR NOTE: 400,000 gals of oily water in a day. Average since Day 1: 174,000 gal/day.

Day 22: May 11

DHRUC: 3,000 more Responders (13,000); 170 more Vessels (460)

By the Numbers to Date: Personnel were quickly deployed and approximately 13,000 are currently responding to protect the shoreline and wildlife. More than 460 vessels are responding on site, including skimmers, tugs, barges, and recovery vessels to assist in containment and cleanup efforts—in addition to dozens of aircraft, remotely operated vehicles, and multiple mobile offshore drilling units. Approximately 1.4 million feet of boom (regular and sorbent) have been deployed to contain the spill—and approximately 1.4 million feet are available. Approximately 3.6 million gallons of an oil-water mix have been recovered. Approximately 372,000 gallons of dispersant have been deployed. More than 180,000 gallons are available. 14 staging areas have been set up to protect vital shoreline in all potentially affected Gulf Coast states (Biloxi, Miss., Pascagoula, Miss., Pensacola, Fla., Panama City, Fla., Dauphin Island, Ala., Grand Isle, La., Shell Beach, La., Slidell, La., Venice, La., Orange Beach, Al., Theodore, Al., Pass Christian, Ms., Amelia, La., and Cocodrie, La.)

TCRR NOTE: 58% jump in vessel count (290+170)

Day 21: May 10

DHRUC: 14 Staging Areas

By the Numbers to Date: Personnel were quickly deployed and approximately 10,000 are currently responding to protect the shoreline and wildlife. More than 290 vessels are responding on site, including skimmers, tugs, barges, and recovery vessels to assist in containment and cleanup efforts—in addition to dozens of aircraft, remotely operated vehicles, and multiple mobile offshore drilling units. More than 1 million feet of boom (regular and sorbent) have been deployed to contain the spill—and more than 1.3 million feet are available. Nearly 3.5 million gallons of an oil-water mix have been recovered. Approximately 325,000 gallons of dispersant have been deployed. More than 500,000 gallons are available. 14 staging areas have been set up to protect vital shoreline in all potentially affected Gulf Coast states (Biloxi, Miss., Pascagoula, Miss., Pensacola, Fla., Panama City, Fla., Dauphin Island, Ala., Grand Isle, La., Shell Beach, La., Slidell, La., Venice, La., Orange Beach, Al., Theodore, Al., Pass Christian, Ms., Amelia, La., and Cocodrie, La.).

TCRR NOTE: Narrative appears to represesnt a summary, perhaps debut of "by the numbers" web project.

Day 20: May 9

DHRUC: 3.5 mil. gals. oily water

Assets to Date: Total response vessels: more than 275; Boom deployed: more than 1 million feet (regular plus sorbent boom); Boom available: more than 1.3 million feet (regular plus sorbent boom); Oily water recovered: approximately 3.5 million gallons; Dispersant used: approximately 325,000 gallons; Dispersant available: more than 500,000 gallons; Overall personnel responding: approximately 10,000

TCRR NOTE: 1.4 mil. gals. oily water in one day. Best since Apr. 29. Average since Day 1: 175,000 gals/day.

Day 19: May 8

DHRUC: 2.1 mil. gals. oily water recovered

Total response vessels: more than 270; Boom deployed: approximately 923,000 feet (regular plus sorbent boom); Boom available: approximately 1.3 million feet (regular plus sorbent boom); Oily water recovered: nearly 2.1 million gallons; Dispersant used: approximately 290,000 gallons; Dispersant available: more than 185,000 gallons; Overall personnel responding: more than 10,000

TCRR NOTE: oily water recovery 2.1 mil; 1 mil gals/wk recovered vs gals/wk spewed? Why the blip of 363,000 gals on Apr. 29 -- a rate of 2.5 mil gals/wk. Where are the recovered gals disposed? Average since Day 1: 110,000 gals/day.

Day 18: May 7

DHRUC: Diminishing Returns

Total response vessels: nearly 270; Boom deployed: approximately 829,000 feet – more than 150 miles (regular plus sorbent boom); Boom available: approximately 1.3 million feet (regular plus sorbent boom); Oily water recovered: nearly 1.9 million gallons; Dispersant used: more than 282,000 gallons; Dispersant available: more than 317,000 gallons; Overall personnel responding: more than 10,000

TCRR NOTE: flatline; all increases incremental.

Day 17: May 6

DHRUC: 270 Vessels, 10,000 Responders

Total response vessels: nearly 270; Boom deployed: approximately 750,000 feet (regular plus sorbent boom); Boom available: 1.4 million feet (regular plus sorbent boom); Oily water recovered: more than 1.8 million gallons; Dispersant used: more than 253,000 gallons; Dispersant available: more than 317,000 gallons; Overall personnel responding: more than 10,000.

TCRR NOTE: 2,100 more responders; 70 more vessels; 200,000 ft more boom deployed (doubled?); boom available drops by 200,000 feet; oily water recovery up to 600,000 gals/day;

Day 16: May 5

DHRUC: 200,000 feet of new boom deployed (564,991); 1.2 mil gal oily water

Total response vessels: nearly 200; Boom deployed: 564,991 feet (regular plus sorbent boom); Boom available: 1.6 million feet (regular plus sorbent boom); Oily water recovered: more than 1.2 million gallons; Dispersant used: more than 190,000 gallons; Dispersant available: more than 55,600 gallons; Overall personnel responding: approximately 7,900

TCRR NOTE: 39 miles of boom laid in one day (but how much of it was "doubled" sorbent and barrier. First specific stat about oily water recovered since May 1 report of "more than a million." To go from 853,000 on April 30 to 1.2 million on May 5 would suggest a significant slowdown in "oily water recovery" efforts which had peaked at 363,000 gallons per day in the April 29 report.

Day 15: May 4

DHRUC: 20 more Vessels (200); 4,000 more Responders (7,500)

Assets To Date—20 More Vessels and 4,000 Responders Arrive. Total response vessels: nearly 200; Boom deployed: 367,881 feet (regular plus sorbent boom); Boom available: more than 1 million feet (regular plus sorbent boom); Oily water recovered: more than 1 million gallons; Dispersant used: nearly 160,000 gallons; Dispersant available: 230,000 gallons; Overall personnel responding: approximately 7,500.

TCRR NOTE: First mention of "sorbent" boom; 189 miles of total boom available; (89 miles of sorbent added to yesterday's 100 miles of barrier?) Boom deployed now at 69 miles, 40 miles more than yesterday. How many miles are now "doubled"? ie. sorbent boom laid up next to barrier boom?

Day 14: May 3

DHRUC: 80 more Vessels (total 183)

Assets To Date—80 More Vessels Arrive; Total response vessels: 183; Boom deployed: 156,703 feet; Boom available: 530,061 feet; Oily water recovered: more than 1 million gallons; Dispersant used: 156,012 gallons; Dispersant available: 230,138 gallons; Overall personnel responding: approximately 3,000

TCRR NOTE: Approx 100 miles of boom now on inventory. 29.7 miles of "deployed boom" documented by official timeline. Daily amounts of "oily water recovery" not specified.

Oil slick brings boom to ‘boom’ business

As of Monday afternoon, officials said 51 miles of boom had been laid around wetlands, barrier islands and other sensitive areas. Another 27 miles were scheduled to be laid soon. For many local officials along the coast, that wasn’t enough.

In St Bernard Parish, a swampy expanse southeast of New Orleans, smack in the oil’s expected path, officials went straight to a manufacturer. “We told ‘em to deliver 25,000 feet of boom every two days to us, until we tell ‘em to stop,” said Wayne Landry, who chairs the parish council. He said BP, the oil giant that was leasing the rig, was expected to pay the bill, which, at the going rate of $10 a foot, is a hefty quarter-million dollars every other day. Now, Landry said, you can fly over St. Bernard’s marshes and see the results of this work: fluorescent lines zigging through the marsh, looking incongruously like the lane markers in a swimming pool. He had posted deputies near his stockpiles to “just guard the boom,” he said. “You don’t want to take any chances.”

Day 13: May 2

DHRUC: 30 more Vessels (total 104), 1,000 more Responders (total 3,000)

Assets To Date—30 More Vessels and Additional 1,000 Responders Arrive; Total response vessels: 104; Boom deployed: 243,200 feet; Boom available: 522,821 feet; Oily water recovered: more than 1 million gallons; Dispersant used: 156,012 gallons; Dispersant available: 75,124 gallons; Overall personnel responding: approximately 3,000.

Day 12: May 1

DHRUC: Eight Staging Areas Up

Eight Staging Areas Begin Operating Eight staging areas were operating in Venice, La., Biloxi, Miss., Pascagoula, Miss., Theodore, Ala., Pensacola, Fla., Port Sulphur, La., Gulfport, Miss., and Port Fourchon, La. Assets To Date: Total response vessels: approximately 75; Boom deployed: 275,580 feet; Boom available: 316,470 feet; Oily water recovered: more than 1 million gallons; Dispersant used: 142,914 gallons; Dispersant available: 68,300 gallons; Overall personnel responding: approximately 2,000

Day 11: April 30

DHRUC: Sixth Staging Area and 1,000 new Responders Added

Sixth Staging Area Stood Up: A sixth staging area is set up in Port Sulphur, La., joining five others in Venice, La., Biloxi, Miss., Pascagoula, Miss., Theodore, Ala., Pensacola, Fla.; Assets To Date—1,000 More Responders Arrive; Total response vessels: approximately 75; Boom deployed: 217,000 feet; Boom available: 305,760 feet; Oily water recovered: 853,146 gallons; Dispersant used: 139,459 gallons; Dispersant available: 51,000 gallons; Overall personnel responding: approximately 2,000.

Day 10: April 29

DHRUC: 25 more vessels (75 total)

Assets Deployed To Date-Additional 25 Vessels Arrive; Total response vessels: approximately 75; Boom deployed: 174,060 feet; Boom available: 243,260 feet; Oily water recovered: 763,560 gallons; Dispersant used: 98,361 gallons; Dispersant available: 75,000 gallons; Overall personnel responding: more than 1,000.

TCRR NOTE: 363,000 gallons of oily water collected in one day. (Divided by 42 gal/barrel=8,643 barrels IF it was pure oil, which it wasn't).

If leak was 70,000 bbls/day (times 42 gals/bbl=2.94 million gals/day) (times 9 days) then there would have been 26.5 million gallons of oil (never mind oily water) to clean up by day nine. According to these numbers the containment effort was about 26 million barrels behind by day nine or 2.5 tankers the size of the Exxon Valdez.

Day 9: April 28

DHRUC: 400,000 gallons of oily water recovered (140,000 more than yesterday)

Assets Deployed To Date: Total response vessels: approximately 50; Boom deployed: 147,100 feet; Oily water recovered: 400,080 gallons; Dispersant used: 56,000 gallons; Dispersant available: 119,734 gallons; Overall personnel responding: more than 1,000.

Day 8: April 27

DHRUC: 20 more vessels (50 total)

Assets Deployed To Date-20 Additional Vessels Arrive; Total response vessels: approximately 50; Boom deployed: 29,280 feet; Boom available: 80,900 feet; Oily water recovered: 260,652 gallons; Dispersant used: 29,140 gallons; Dispersant available: 119,734 gallons; Overall personnel responding: more than 1,000.

Day 7: April 26

DHRUC: 1,000 Responders

Assets Deployed To Date- 500 More Responders Deploy; Total response vessels: more than 30; Boom deployed: 21,340 feet; Oily water recovered: 48,384 gallons; Dispersant used: 14,654 gallons; Dispersant available: 119,734 gallons; Overall personnel responding: more than 1,000.

Day 6: April 25

DHRUC: 30 Response Vessels

Assets Deployed To Date-20 More Vessels and 500 Responders; Total response vessels: more than 30; Boom deployed: 21,340 feet; Oily water recovered: approximately 42,000 gallons; Dispersant used: 12,600 gallons; Dispersant available: approximately 100,000 gallons; Overall personnel responding: approximately 500

Day 5: April 24

DHRUC: 40,000 gallons

Total response vessels: approximately 10. Oily water recovered: approximately 40,000 gallons

TCRR NOTE: deepwaterhorizonresponse.com website registered with GoDaddy on April 24, 2010 (Internic Whois).

Day 4: April 23

DHRUC: 8 more boats arrive

Total response vessels: approximately 10 (eight new boats reported plus two cutters on scene since April 20) Oily water recovered: 7,600 gallons; Dispersant used: 1,900 gallons.

Coast Guard Logs Reveal Early Spill Estimate

By April 23, the Coast Guard logs include a new estimate that a full blowout could result in a spill of 64,000 to 110,000 barrels per day, the logs show.

Day 1: April 20

The victims of the Deepwater Horizon explosion

The Times of London published Friday the first complete list of the oil workers killed in the April 20 explosion of the Deepwater Horizon oil rig off the coast of Louisiana.

DHRUC: Two Cutters, Four Helicopters, One Plane

Assets Deployed To Date: Total response vessels: Two Coast Guard cutters; Total response aircraft: Four helicopters and one rescue plane

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