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• OSHA impersonator gets 57 months in oil spill scam

  May 17, 2013 4:21 PM

  NEW ORLEANS - A woman has been sentenced to 57 months in prison for bilking Gulf Coast residents by posing as a federal safety official after the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill. The U.S. Justice Department said Friday that 47-year-old Connie Knight, formerly of Belle Chasse, had claimed to be... more »

• Ex-BP executive's trial delayed

  May 9, 2013 11:32 AM

  NEW ORLEANS - A federal judge has agreed to postpone the trial of a former BP executive. David Rainey is charged with concealing information from Congress about the amount of oil that was leaking from the company's blown-out well in the Gulf of Mexico in 2010. Rainey's trial was scheduled... more »

• OEP: Oil storage tank fires out, evacuation lifted

  May 3, 2013 5:20 PM

  DENHAM SPRINGS - Emergency managers confirmed to News 2 that fires which started last night at an oil storage facility in Livingston Parish are out and an evacuation order was lifted. Firefighters said they were watching for flare-ups and checking for hot spots. The fire started around 10:30... more »

• Oil company offers compensation for tank fire Play Video

  May 3, 2013 3:31 PM

  DENHAM SPRINGS - The company responsible for an oil well which caught fire overnight in Livingston Parish offered to compensate people evacuated from the area, according to the parish Office of Emergency Preparedness. Denbury's corporate office released several numbers for people to call and arrange payment for expenses they... more »

• OEP: Lightning might have caused oil tank fire

  May 3, 2013 11:00 AM

  DENHAM SPRINGS - Emergency managers in Livingston Parish said lightning might have caused an oil storage tank to catch fire last night near Denham Springs. Mark Harrell, director of the parish Office of Emergency Preparedness, said people living near the fire at Linder Road and Arnold Road told them... more »

• Bryant: $69M more from BP for Gulf restoration

  May 2, 2013 3:14 PM

  JACKSON, Miss. - BP PLC has agreed to pay $69 million more for restoration projects for the Mississippi Gulf Coast following, says Gov. Phil Bryant. The money is part of $1 billion the oil giant agreed two years ago to pay for early restoration work after the 2010 Deepwater Horizon... more »

• Oil spill judge: What is gross negligence?

  April 24, 2013 6:50 PM

  NEW ORLEANS - The judge who will allocate responsibility for the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill has told lawyers to give him their views about whether a series of negligent acts can add up to gross negligence. The Justice Department and private plaintiffs' attorneys contend that BP PLC acted... more »

• Testimony ends for 1st phase of BP spill trial

  April 17, 2013 6:00 PM

  NEW ORLEANS - Testimony has concluded for the first phase of a high-stakes trial over the deadly 2010 rig explosion that led to the nation's worst offshore oil spill. U.S. District Judge Carl Barbier didn't rule Wednesday on any claims in the litigation after BP PLC wrapped up its defense.... more »

• BP calls 1st witness at trial over Gulf spill

  April 8, 2013 10:20 AM

  NEW ORLEANS - BP's first witness at a trial over the deadly Deepwater Horizon disaster says the company safely drilled its Macondo well in the Gulf of Mexico before an April 2010 blowout triggered the nation's worst offshore oil spill. Retired LSU petroleum engineering professor Adam "Ted" Bourgoyne Jr. is... more »

• La. man gets prison for plot to defraud BP

  April 3, 2013 10:16 AM

  NEW ORLEANS - A Covington businessman has been sentenced to 18 months in prison for a plot in which he fraudulently billed BP for roughly $1.4 million for use of a helicopter after the company's huge 2010 oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. Bay Ingram, who owned Southeast Recovery... more »

• Group: Dolphin, turtle deaths a sign of sick Gulf

  April 2, 2013 1:44 PM

  NEW ORLEANS - A prominent environmental group says continuing deaths of dolphins and sea turtles are a sign that the Gulf of Mexico is still feeling effects from the 2010 oil spill. National Wildlife Federation scientist Doug Inkley said Tuesday the deaths - especially in dolphins, which are at the... more »

• Ark. AG plans to open investigation into oil spill

  April 2, 2013 10:24 AM

  LITTLE ROCK, Ark. - Arkansas Attorney General Dustin McDaniel is going to open an investigation into the cause and impact of last week's ExxonMobil pipeline rupture. McDaniel's office said Tuesday that ExxonMobil has been asked to preserve all documents and information related to Friday's oil spill and ongoing cleanup efforts... more »

• US rig count increases by 2 this week to 1,748

  March 28, 2013 4:55 PM

  HOUSTON - Oilfield services company Baker Hughes Inc. says the number of rigs actively exploring for oil and natural gas in the U.S. increased by two this week to 1,748. The Houston-based company said in its weekly report that 1,354 rigs were exploring for oil and 389 for gas. Five... more »

• Oil platform owner sued over deadly blast in Gulf

  March 26, 2013 2:08 PM

  NEW ORLEANS- Relatives of two victims of a deadly explosion on an oil platform in the Gulf of Mexico are suing the platform's owner and operator. A federal lawsuit filed Monday by Ellroy Corporal's widow accuses Houston-based Black Elk Energy Offshore Operations LLC of negligently exposing workers to dangerous conditions.... more »

• Plantiffs rest in trial over 2010 Gulf oil spill

  March 20, 2013 2:17 PM

  NEW ORLEANS- Plaintiffs' attorneys have rested their case at a trial over the deadly Deepwater Horizon rig explosion and massive 2010 oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. A federal judge heard testimony by more than a dozen witnesses called by the Justice Department and private attorneys for Gulf Coast... more »

• Coast Guard: emergency ends where tug hit pipeline

  March 19, 2013 4:31 PM

  LAFITTE- An emergency situation near the Gulf of Mexico has ended, according to the Coast Guard. Last Tuesday, a tugboat and barge collided with a pipeline causing an explosion and a fire that burned for days. The four crew onboard the tug escaped, but the captain sustained second... more »

• Defense starts for companies in Gulf spill trial

  March 18, 2013 10:16 AM

  NEW ORLEANS - The owner of the drilling rig that exploded in the Gulf of Mexico in 2010 has started to present its defense at a trial designed to determine the causes of the deadly disaster and assign fault to the companies involved. Transocean Ltd. called its first witness Monday... more »

• Tug captain burned in fire

  March 13, 2013 1:06 AM

  NEW ORLEANS- The Coast Guard released details late Tuesday about a tug fire near Lafitte. The 47-foot tug Shanon E. Settoon collided with a pipeline while pushing an oil barge Tuesday evening. The collision caused a fire. All crew members escaped, but the captain suffered second to third-degree burns... more »

• Halliburton exec testifies at Gulf spill trial

  March 11, 2013 3:41 PM

  NEW ORLEANS - An executive from the company that was BP's cement contractor on the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig says he learned of some "irregularities" in tests that the contractor's employees performed after the massive 2010 oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. Timothy Probert, a Halliburton president who served... more »

• Coast Guard: No oil found after reports of inland spill

  March 11, 2013 11:47 AM

  PLAQUEMINE - The Coast Guard said they found no oil at the site of a reported spill near Plaquemine. Commander Quincy Davis said they were told Saturday an oil spill was spotted about 10 miles south of the Port Allen Locks. He also said the person who reported it... more »

• BP exec back on the stand in oil spill trial

  February 28, 2013 10:26 AM

  NEW ORLEANS - A BP executive who led the company's internal probe of the 2010 oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico says his investigators didn't explore whether top BP managers had a role in causing the disaster because they didn't have access to employees and records from contractors. Mark... more »

• Judge watches videotape of ex-BP CEO's testimony

  February 27, 2013 10:42 AM

  NEW ORLEANS - The judge in the Gulf of Mexico oil spill trial has watched videotaped testimony from former BP chief executive Tony Hayward. Hayward was head of the London-based oil giant in 2010 when there was an explosion on the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig. Eleven workers were killed and... more »

• USCG: Oil-water mix leaking after vessel hit wellhead

  February 27, 2013 10:26 AM

  NEW ORLEANS - A crewboat struck an inactive wellhead in the Gulf of Mexico overnight, causing it to spew a mixture of oil and water according to the U. S. Coast Guard. They reported the vessel hit the wellhead, which is owned by Swift Energy, around 8 p.m. Tuesday.... more »

• BP executive testifies at Gulf oil spill trial

  February 26, 2013 6:41 PM

  NEW ORLEANS - The first BP executive to testify at a trial spawned by the massive 2010 oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico has taken the stand. Lamar McKay was president of BP America at the time of the disaster. He is the trial's second witness and is expected... more »

• Expert testifies BP cuts led to Gulf oil disaster

  February 26, 2013 10:30 AM

  NEW ORLEANS - The first testimony in the civil trial over the Gulf oil spill came from an expert who said he found evidence the company's penchant for cutting costs led to the disaster. Robert Bea, a University of California Berkeley engineering professor, said BP PLC did not put... more »

• Trial set to open for Gulf oil spill litigation

  February 25, 2013 7:17 AM

  NEW ORLEANS - The high-stakes Gulf oil spill trial has started with a lawyer criticizing BP by saying company executives put enormous pressure on drilling managers to cut costs and rush the job. Jim Roy is an attorney for individuals and businesses affected by the spill. He says BP repeatedly... more »

• Judge approves Transocean's $1B spill settlement

  February 19, 2013 10:41 AM

  NEW ORLEANS - A federal judge today approved Transocean Ltd.'s agreement with the Justice Department to pay $1 billion in civil penalties for its role in the massive 2010 oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. U.S. District Judge Carl Barbier said in his ruling Tuesday that he found... more »

• Oil sheen spotted after barge collision on Miss. River

  February 15, 2013 10:48 AM

  BATON ROUGE- The Coast Guard says a collision between two barges spilled less than 400 gallons of oil into the Mississippi River at the Port of Greater Baton Rouge. No injuries were reported after one of the barges struck another that was offloading fuel at a transfer station Thursday night.... more »

• Crews working to contain oil after tugs collide on river

  February 14, 2013 10:55 PM

  BATON ROUGE- The Coast Guard and other emergency responders are on the Mississippi River, working to contain an oil spill after some tugboats collided. An official with the USCG told WBRZ News 2, a tug and barge was docked, off loading an oil product when another tug and barge... more »

• Houston company sued over oil discharged in Gulf

  February 11, 2013 5:14 PM

  NEW ORLEANS - The Justice Department filed suit against a Houston-based company it accused of illegally dumping oil from a Gulf of Mexico platform. The federal suit filed Monday in New Orleans against ATP Oil & Gas Corp. says an Interior Department inspection last year uncovered violations of the Clean... more »

• Genesis Energy plans Baton Rouge area expansion

  February 4, 2013 11:13 AM

  BATON ROUGE - Genesis Energy is expanding its presence in the Baton Rouge area, with plans to build a crude oil pipeline that will connect to ExxonMobil's refinery. The Houston-based company supports refinery and chemical operations with pipeline transportation, supplies and logistics. It announced the $125 million project Monday. Construction... more »

• 14 dead, 80 injured in Mexico oil company blast

  January 31, 2013 7:44 PM

  MEXICO CITY - Mexico's state-owned oil company says 14 people have died and 80 are injured in an office building explosion at its headquarters in the capital. An explosion at the main headquarters of Petroleos Mexicanos, or Pemex, also damaged three floors of the building, sending hundreds into the streets... more »

• Oil cleanup resuming at leaking Miss. River barge

  January 31, 2013 2:49 AM

  JACKSON, Miss. - Vessels are moving cautiously through a section of the Mississippi River where a barge is leaking oil as the Coast Guard tries to ease the economic impact of shutting down one of the nation's vital commerce routes. Chief Petty Officer Paul Roszkowski says officials are allowing northbound... more »

• Barges testing closed section of Miss. River

  January 30, 2013 11:08 AM

  JACKSON, Miss.- The Coast Guard is letting southbound vessels pass through a closed section of the Mississippi River at Vicksburg to test how they will affect efforts to remove oil from a leaking barge. Chief Petty Officer Paul Roszkowski tells The Associated Press a 16-mile stretch of the river remains... more »

• Barge hits Miss. River bridge: Oil cleanup ongoing

  January 28, 2013 8:49 AM

  JACKSON, Miss.- The Coast Guard says a normally bustling stretch of the Mississippi River remains closed to barge and ship traffic as cleanup crews with booms work to remove an oily sheen near Vicksburg after a barge with 80,000 gallons of oil hit a railroad bridge last weekend. Coast Guard... more »

• Bayou Sorrel oil spill bigger than original estimate Play Video

  January 23, 2013 6:19 PM

  BAYOU SORREL - On January 3, 2013, a pipeline burst spilling over 100 barrels of crude oil into the Frog Lake area of Bayou Sorrel. Firefighters and Hazmat crews initiated a controlled burn last Saturday, which was unsuccessful. After a helicopter flyover this morning, the U.S. Coast Guard confirmed... more »

• Final Keystone pipeline decision still months away

  January 23, 2013 6:25 AM

  WASHINGTON - Nebraska Gov. Dave Heineman's approval of a revised route for the Keystone XL oil pipeline puts the long-delayed project back in the hands of the federal government. But don't look for a quick decision on the $7 billion project, which would carry oil from Canada to the... more »

• Government again delays proposed 'fracking' rule

  January 18, 2013 5:42 PM

  WASHINGTON - The Interior Department is again delaying a proposed rule that would require companies drilling for oil and natural gas on federal lands to publicly disclose chemicals used in hydraulic fracturing operations. The Obama administration first proposed a "fracking" rule last May, with a final rule expected by the... more »

• Tug boat sinks in Mississippi River Play Video

  January 18, 2013 11:54 AM

  LAPLACE - The Coast Guard says a tug boat carrying 4,000 gallons of diesel and 100 gallons of lube oil sank in the Mississippi River near LaPlace. Petty Officer Alex Washington tells The Times-Picayune no one was on the vessel at the time and no injuries were reported. Washington... more »

• Blast victims' relatives weigh in on BP plea deal

  January 16, 2013 10:17 AM

  NEW ORLEANS - Relatives of workers killed in the Deepwater Horizon rig explosion are sharing their stories with the judge who will decide whether to accept a plea deal that calls for BP PLC to pay a record $4.5 billion in penalties for the 2010 disaster. Wednesday is the deadline... more »

• Federal judge delays ex-BP engineer's trial

  January 14, 2013 4:20 PM

  NEW ORLEANS - A federal judge has agreed to postpone the trial of a former BP engineer charged with deleting text messages about the company's response to the 2010 oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. Kurt Mix's trial was scheduled to start Feb. 25, but U.S. District Judge Stanwood... more »

• La. AG's oil spill tab nears $24M

  January 14, 2013 2:48 PM

  BATON ROUGE - Louisiana's attorney general has spent nearly $24 million building the state's legal case against BP over the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill. And records show much of the money has gone to outside law firms that have contributed to his campaigns. The $15.4 million that Attorney... more »

• BP: Government overestimated size of spill

  January 11, 2013 3:24 PM

  NEW ORLEANS - BP has urged a federal judge to rule the company can't be penalized for millions of gallons of oil that spewed from its blown-out well but was captured before it could spill into the Gulf of Mexico. A court filing Friday by BP says the federal government... more »

• Wreck, oil reported on I-12 in Livingston Parish

  January 11, 2013 10:46 AM

  WALKER - Authorities in Livingston Parish responded to two traffic incidents this morning after heavy rains there. The Livingston Parish Sheriff's Office reported a vehicle flipped in some water on I-12 West between Satsuma and Walker. Police and EMS were responding to the wreck as of 10:30 a.m. ... more »

• Pilot who struck Bay Bridge had 3 prior mishaps

  January 8, 2013 1:30 PM

  SAN FRANCISCO - The pilot of the empty oil tanker that grazed the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge had three minor shipping mishaps previously. California Board of Pilot Commissioners records show that pilot Guy Kleess was at fault for two of the accidents. In one, a dock in the Port of... more »

• Tanker which hit Calif. bridge had no oil cargo

  January 7, 2013 4:32 PM

  SAN FRANCISCO - Officials say the ship that hit the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge was not carrying oil as cargo, only fuel to power its engines. The ship struck a tower of the bridge's western span around 11:20 a.m. Monday. Coast Guard and transportation officials say there were no reports... more »

• Gas prices staying down as 2013 starts

  January 7, 2013 10:33 AM

  NEW YORK - U.S. drivers are hoping 2013 doesn't start off like 2012 at the gas pump. So far, so good. Gasoline now averages $3.30 a gallon, up about half a penny since Jan. 1. A year ago, gas rose about 10 cents in the first week or so because... more »

• Transocean's $1.4B oil spill deal will help Gulf

  January 4, 2013 7:14 AM

  NEW ORLEANS - A $1.4 billion settlement between the Justice Department and Deepwater Horizon rig owner Transocean Ltd. will pump hundreds of millions of dollars into projects designed to help the Gulf Coast recover from the nation's largest offshore oil spill. U.S. Democratic Sen. Mary Landrieu of Louisiana said... more »

• La. to see millions from Transocean settlement

  January 3, 2013 3:47 PM

  NEW ORLEANS - Louisiana lawmakers trumpeted the fact that the state will see hundreds of millions of dollars as part of the federal government's $1.4 billion settlement with Transocean today over the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. The final terms of the settlement require Transocean, which owned the drilling rig... more »

• BP worker loses appeal over court-ordered exam

  January 3, 2013 2:48 PM

  NEW ORLEANS - A federal appeals court has refused to overturn a ruling that a BP rig supervisor must submit to a medical exam to determine if he is fit to be questioned under oath for civil litigation spawned by the company's Gulf oil spill. A three-judge panel from the... more »

• Groups seek halt to Arctic offshore drilling

  January 3, 2013 12:10 PM

  ANCHORAGE, Alaska - Two national environmental groups are calling for a halt to federal permits for Arctic offshore petroleum drilling after the grounding of a Royal Dutch Shell PLC drill ship off Alaska's coast. Representatives of the Natural Resources Defense Council and The Wilderness Society say Shell has demonstrated it's... more »

• Feds say delay worsened 2011 oil spill

  January 2, 2013 1:07 PM

  BILLINGS, Mont. - Federal investigators say Exxon Mobil Corp.'s delayed response to a pipeline break beneath Montana's Yellowstone River made the spill far worse than it otherwise would have been. Department of Transportation investigators say the volume of the 1,500-barrel spill could have been cut by about two-thirds if pipeline... more »

• No oil spill seen at Shell drill ship in Alaska

  January 1, 2013 11:26 AM

  ANCHORAGE, Alaska - An overnight Coast Guard flight over an Alaska drilling rig that ran aground in shallow water on New Year's Eve found no signs of a fuel spill. But officials at a unified command center run by the Coast Guard, Royal Dutch Shell PLC, state responders and others... more »

• Judge approves settlement in BP class action suit

  December 22, 2012 9:50 AM

  NEW ORLEANS - A federal judge has given final approval to BP's settlement with businesses and individuals who lost money because of the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill. BP PLC estimates it will pay $7.8 billion to cover economic and medical claims from more than 100,000 businesses and individuals.... more »

• Source of persistent Gulf sheen remains a mystery

  December 18, 2012 4:19 PM

  NEW ORLEANS - Officials say underwater inspections at the site of BP's Deepwater Horizon rig disaster have failed to identify the source of a persistent sheen on the surface of the Gulf of Mexico. The Coast Guard said Tuesday that the recent inspections confirmed BP's Macondo well, which blew out... more »

• Judge sets date to rule on BP plea deal over spill

  December 11, 2012 4:48 PM

  NEW ORLEANS - A federal judge says she will decide next month whether to accept a plea deal that calls for BP PLC to pay a record $4.5 billion in penalties for its role in a deadly 2010 rig explosion and the massive oil spill it triggered in the Gulf... more »

• New judge assigned to case against BP supervisors

  December 5, 2012 3:07 PM

  NEW ORLEANS - A new judge has been assigned to the case against two BP supervisors charged in the deaths of 11 workers aboard the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig in 2010. The case had been assigned to U.S. District Judge Ivan Lemelle, who disclosed last month that his wife owns... more »

• Oil down with Cushing inventory nearly flat

  December 5, 2012 11:34 AM

  NEW YORK - Oil prices are lower Wednesday after the government reported that stocks of crude are still running much higher than usual for this time of year. Benchmark crude fell 24 cents to $88.26 in midday trading. Oil prices were higher earlier in the day. But the weekly report... more »

• BP official appeals medical exam order

  December 5, 2012 11:31 AM

  NEW ORLEANS - A BP PLC employee has asked a federal appeals court to overturn a judge's ruling that he must submit to a medical exam to determine whether he is fit to be questioned under oath in civil litigation spawned by the Deepwater Horizon disaster. A three-judge panel of... more »

• Oil and gas deduction could be key to onshore drilling Play Video

  November 28, 2012 5:32 PM

  BATON ROUGE- Louisiana oil and gas representatives say a tax deduction dating back seven or eight decades could help jumpstart onshore oil activity. The break allows companies to deduct a percentage of their income as costs. It is an annual break of 22 percent for certain properties. Mid Continent... more »

• Body identified as missing oil platform worker

  November 28, 2012 4:43 PM

  NEW ORLEANS - A body found Monday in the Gulf of Mexico near Grand Isle has been identified as a Filipino worker missing since a Nov. 16 oil platform fire. Lafourche Parish Coroner Dr. John King says the body is 28-year-old Jerome Malagapo. Malagapo had been working for Grand Isle... more »

• 3 BP employees arraigned on Gulf oil spill charges

  November 28, 2012 3:44 PM

  NEW ORLEANS - Two BP rig supervisors and a former BP executive have pleaded not guilty to criminal charges in the deadly Deepwater Horizon rig explosion and the company's response to the massive 2010 spill in the Gulf of Mexico. BP well site leaders Robert Kaluza and Donald Vidrine and... more »

• Gulf oil tracts up for bid

  November 28, 2012 8:58 AM

  NEW ORLEANS - The government will auction off leases Wednesday on about 20 million acres of ocean bottom available for oil and gas production in the western Gulf of Mexico. The tracts range from 9 to up to 250 miles offshore. The last sale of western Gulf lease... more »

• Officials trying to identify body pulled from Gulf

  November 27, 2012 5:26 PM

  NEW ORLEANS - The Jefferson Parish coroner's office is trying to determine whether the decomposed body of a man recovered from the Gulf of Mexico is a worker missing since a fire erupted on an offshore oil platform on Nov. 16. The Coast Guard says the body was spotted Monday... more »

• Oil prices fall as Israel-Hamas truce holds

  November 26, 2012 3:07 PM

  NEW YORK - Oil is back below $88 per barrel after a slow day of trading. Analysts are giving two reasons for the decline. One is that the truce between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip appears to be holding. The second is that traders are worried that negotiations... more »

• Judge sets meeting to discuss BP plea deal

  November 26, 2012 11:20 AM

  NEW ORLEANS - A federal judge has rescheduled a closed-door meeting to discuss BP's agreement to plead guilty to criminal charges stemming from its deadly 2010 rig explosion and response to the massive Gulf oil spill. U.S. District Judge Sarah Vance had planned to meet Thursday in her chambers with... more »

• Worker injured in platform fire dies

  November 23, 2012 11:56 AM

  BATON ROUGE - One of four Filipino workers injured in an explosion and fire on a Gulf oil platform died today, according to the Phillippine Embassy. Ambassador Jose L. Cuisia, Jr., said in a press release that Avelino Tajonera passed away early this morning. He said Tajonera's wife... more »

• Road re-opened after fire, oil spill

  November 23, 2012 11:32 AM

  BATON ROUGE - A fire destroyed a bus maintenance building this morning and spilled oil into the nearby streets, according the Baton Rouge Fire Department. The building at 7106 Greenwell Springs Road and equipment inside were a total loss, according to Curt Monte with BRFD. The fire was... more »

• Agency: Company needs to improve offshore safety

  November 21, 2012 1:53 PM

  NEW ORLEANS - A federal agency has told the owner of an offshore oil platform where a deadly explosion and fire happened last week to take immediate steps to improve safety at its offshore operations. The Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement said Wednesday that Black Elk Energy Offshore Operations... more »

• New drilling operation near fiery I-10 blowout site

  November 20, 2012 9:43 PM

  RAMAH- Drilling crews have returned to an area where a drilling disaster happened in 2007. Then, a blowout preventer failed and ignited a fireball. The inferno shutdown the I-10 Basin Bridge for ten days. Since then, rules have been changed. Now, a company has received a permit to... more »

• Oysters available for holiday tables

  November 20, 2012 4:03 PM

  NEW ORLEANS - Grocers and a leading oyster processor in Louisiana say supplies for holiday tables appear to be ample this year, but the news is not all good. The state Wildlife and Fisheries Department said late Tuesday that commercial oyster harvests east of the Mississippi River are at historic... more »

• 2 workers shoulder blame for 2010 BP oil disaster

  November 19, 2012 3:14 PM

  NEW ORLEANS - Federal authorities have blamed two rig supervisors for the deaths of 11 workers killed when the Deepwater Horizon exploded and spawned BP's massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, even though a string of investigations spread fault among a host of people and companies. A federal... more »

• Four burn victims in BR for special treatment

  November 16, 2012 9:41 PM

  BATON ROUGE- Four victims of a oil platform explosion are at a burn unit, getting treatment. The victims were transferred to Baton Rouge General Mid City from a hospital in the New Orleans area Friday evening. The hospital cannot comment specifically on the patients' injuries or care. But,... more »

• Search continues for two missing after platform fire Play Video

  November 16, 2012 10:16 AM

  NEW ORLEANS - The Coast Guard said they are continuing to search for two missing oil platform workers after a cutting torch caused an explosion and fire this morning. Capt. Ed Cubanski told reporters at the noon briefing there were no confirmed deaths. Emergency managers had erroneously reported two... more »

• Environmental group says BP penalty isn't enough

  November 15, 2012 4:06 PM

  NEW ORLEANS - Lawyers for two BP oil rig workers say the Justice Department is trying to make scapegoats out of them. The two were indicted today on federal charges including manslaughter, in the deaths of 11 workers in the rig explosion that led to the Gulf oil spill two... more »

• BP executive charged with lying to authorities

  November 15, 2012 1:16 PM

  NEW ORLEANS - Two men who worked for BP during the 2010 Gulf oil spill disaster have been charged with manslaughter and a third with lying to federal investigators, according to indictments made public Thursday, hours after BP announced it was paying $4.5 billion in a settlement with the U.S.... more »

• Judge asked to extend deadline in BP settlement

  November 14, 2012 2:22 PM

  NEW ORLEANS - BP and a team of plaintiffs' attorneys are urging a federal judge to extend a deadline for businesses and individuals to revoke their requests to opt out of a proposed class-action settlement of economic damage claims spawned by the Gulf oil spill. Potential claimants had until Nov.... more »

• Federal judge urged to approve BP settlement

  November 8, 2012 10:49 AM

  NEW ORLEANS - BP PLC and a team of plaintiffs' attorneys are urging a federal judge to give final approval to a proposed class-action settlement of economic damage claims spawned by the massive 2010 oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. U.S. District Judge Carl Barbier is holding a "fairness... more »

• Recipients picked for BP tourism, seafood grants

  November 7, 2012 3:17 PM

  NEW ORLEANS - More than 100 nonprofit groups and government entities have been picked to get shares of $43.7 million in BP funds to promote the Gulf Coast's tourism and seafood industries following the company's 2010 oil spill. The first round of grants announced Wednesday by court-supervised claims administrator Patrick... more »

• La. AG seeks trial for state claims over BP spill

  October 25, 2012 4:02 PM

  NEW ORLEANS - Louisiana Attorney General James "Buddy" Caldwell's office is asking a federal judge to set a trial date for some of the state's economic loss claims against BP PLC stemming from the 2010 oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. In a court filing Wednesday, Caldwell's office claims... more »

• BP: Source of sheen from equipment

  October 18, 2012 3:25 PM

  NEW ORLEANS - BP PLC says a sheen on the Gulf of Mexico appears to have come from oil seeping out of a piece of discarded equipment used to contain its massive 2010 oil spill. On Thursday, the company said underwater surveys determined oil probably leaked from an 86-ton steel... more »

• Ample supplies push oil down 1 pct

  October 18, 2012 10:19 AM

  NEW YORK - The price of oil is falling on expectations that China is less likely to roll out a stimulus program for its improving economy. U.S. benchmark oil fell 94 cents, or 1 percent, to $91.18 a barrel in morning trading. Brent crude, which many U.S. refiners use to... more »

• Crews plan visit to rig wreckage, find source of "new oil"

  October 12, 2012 10:09 PM

  NEW ORLEANS- Crews will use remotely operated vehicles to get a look at the Deepwater Horizon wreckage, and hopefully pinpoint the source of a new oil sheen in the Gulf of Mexico. This week, the sheen was connected to the BP spill in 2010. The ROV is expected to... more »

• Oil rises slightly on unrest in the Middle East

  October 12, 2012 10:35 AM

  NEW YORK - The price of oil is slightly higher as worries about unrest in the Middle East are offset by new predictions of falling demand. Benchmark oil rose 1 cent Friday to $92.08 per barrel. Brent crude fell 83 cents to $113.84 per barrel in London. Oil prices... more »

• Oil prices up as Turkey-Syria tension rises

  October 11, 2012 10:48 AM

  NEW YORK - Oil prices are up, rising above $92 per barrel as tension between Turkey and Syria raises concerns about a disruption to crude oil supplies from the Middle East. In morning trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange, benchmark crude is up $1.33 to $92.58 per barrel.... more »

• Oil prices fall after warning from World Bank

  October 8, 2012 10:44 AM

  NEW YORK - A strong warning from the World Bank that growth in Asia may slow further is dragging down the price of oil Monday. The World Bank signaled the possibility of a "more pronounced slowdown" in China, the world's second largest economy after the United States. It also cut... more »

• Judge tosses BP fuel dealers' brand-name claims

  October 2, 2012 2:53 PM

  NEW ORLEANS - A federal judge has dismissed claims by BP fuel dealers that the 2010 oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico diminished the value of the oil giant's brand and cost them business. U.S. District Judge Carl Barbier's ruling Tuesday says the dealers' claims against BP PLC... more »