A substantial quantity of oil has leaked from a collapsed storage tank on a platform in Terrebonne Bay, Louisiana. A spill response is underway.
The platform structure at oil company Hilcorp’s Caillou Island facility failed on Monday August 8th. As a result a storage tank fell into the water. Hilcorp estimated that up to 14,000 gallons of crude oil were released.
The US Coast Guard responded and was overseeing containment work. About 4,500ft of containment boom had already been deployed, along with three skimming vessels and five response vessels.
The field at Caillou Island first entered production in 1960 under the operation of Union Oil Company. Ownership later transferred to Texaco, then Chevron, then Hilcorp. The majority of the wells at the field are recorded as plugged and abandoned.
Hilcorp specializes in acquiring and operating older facilities previously owned by the majors.
