Pensacola Beach, the way it used to be.....
::
I know the panhandle is going though a serious economic turn right now, but to keep beaches open at this point is unconscionable.
This is what a Pensacola, Florida resident said about the water and smell:
"I only went into the water up to my ankles. That's as far as I wanted to go," said Joe Chambers, 28, of West Pensacola as he scrubbed off oily residue from himself and his son, Ethan, 4, in the public showers at Casino Beach. "It doesn't smell like the beach. It smells like a gas station. There are no fish in the water. There's nothing alive in the water. I don't know how public officials can just look at the water and make a call to reopen it for swimming."
(snip)
Carol Doster of Grand Isle, Miss., said her son Dallas, 12, was frightened by the oil that streaked his legs and arms after a five-minute swim in the Gulf on Friday. "It won't rub off," Doster said.
Who in their right mind want to go into water that smell like a gas station? Can someone help me understand that? I carry and KEEP Purell in my car just for cleaning my hands after pumping gas into my car, and this is even if gas does or does not get on me.
The authorities in Florida need to do the right thing and close those beaches. Furthermore, residents need to STAY AWAY.
There are several components working here, one is the toxicity of this oil which is dealt by professionals with HAZ MAT SUITS, second is the dispersant still being sprayed in the Gulf of Mexico. BP is still using high levels of corexit, with 1.47 million gallons being used to this day. For any rational thinking person, going into ANY GULF WATERS at this point is a NO CAN DO. Then there is the health part of this equation:
Similar to the health advisory, the impact advisory would warn beachgoers to avoid touching oily product on the beach and in the water, and it would advise them leaving the beach and seeking medical help if they experience respiratory problems.
So far, 400 people have sought medical care for upper or lower respiratory problems, headaches, nausea, and eye irritation after trips to Escambia County beaches, Lanza said.
OK, we don't KNOW what affects this water will have on the marine life, which by the way is washing up dead on the Gulf Beach shores daily. If we don't know the full account of what is happening to the marine life, why would we even ponder to have humans go in this water.
And then there is this:
Lanza said he lifted the health advisory on Pensacola Beach early Friday on the advice of W.A. "Buck" Lee, Santa Rosa Island Authority executive director. Lee said he made the recommendation based on a visual inspection.
A visual inspection? Are you kidding me? From a propped up local bureaucrat whose sole responsibility is to keep money coming into this region.
But this from the EPA for Pensacola Beach, confused much?
Meanwhile, the Environmental Protection Agency plans to put decontamination stations along the beach, possibly as early as this weekend.
It is time for the Federal Government to step in and ban going to these beaches, as they have set a moratorium on deep water oil drilling.
Why? Because coming down the pipe with this mess will be huge affects of this oil in humans. That deals with the unknown and HEALTH CARE COSTS. That is why.
I know that the people in this area are pissed and mad at BP, the government, point taken, but to allow people in these toxic waters which CAN GIVE YOU CANCER with the chemicals in this oil is totally irresponsible.
Yes, a beach that smells like a gas station is just too much, for me.
Source : PNJ
Bloomberg Business Week
Update [2010-6-28 1:23:9 by icebergslim]:
This is the bureaucrat BUCK LEE (who comes across as a slick used car salesman, in my view) on Hardball, June 24, 2010 saying there is NO SMELL. But from what is being reported that is VASTLY INCORRECT.
Update [2010-6-28 1:27:34 by icebergslim]:
h/t Sagebrush Bob, kids just walking through OIL on Destin Beach in Florida, June 23, 2010. Unbelievable.
Cross-posted @ Daily Kos
Home Page
Share
