NEW ORLEANS, La. (AP) — Firefighting vessels are battling the flames from an oil rig that exploded and caught fire today in the Gulf of Mexico off the Louisiana coast.
The Coast Guard says an oil sheen, about 100 feet wide and a mile long, has been spotted near the platform.
The rig is in shallow water -- about 340 feet deep. And responding to any oil spill would be much easier than in deep water. The BP well that spewed oil and gas into the Gulf for three months was in water about 5,000 feet deep.
Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal says he's been told by the platform's owner that there were seven active production wells there, and that they were shut down shortly after the fire broke out.
All 13 crew members were rescued. The Coast Guard says one crew member was injured, but the platform's owner says there were no injuries.
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Chief Petty Officer John Edwards
Coast Guard spokesman John Edwards says the platform is still burning. ((watch for dating))
