More than 100,000 Gallons of Oil Spill into Pacific off Santa Barbara
An oil spill is wreaking havoc along the beaches of California, turning the pristine shores of Santa Barbara into a veritable wasteland.
BuzzFeed News reports that the spill is already 9 miles wide and current estimates of the amount of oil spilled exceed 100,000 gallons. The cause of the spill is said to be a ruptured oil pipeline on land, but its proximity to a storm drain allowed the oil to easily reach the sea.
The U.S. Coast Guard is currently trying to contain the spill, but that has not stopped thousands of gallons from hitting California's beaches.
The pipeline was owned and operated by Plains All American Pipeline
Images of the spill, including where it originated, could be found on Twitter.
I'm just down hill of where pipe ruptured, sent oil into this culvert under the train tracks #SantaBarbaraOilSpill pic.twitter.com/Pyv9vLSM2M
— Javier Panzar (@jpanzar) May 20, 2015
Although the pipeline was shut off Tuesday, May 19, shortly before noon, the spill could already be seen taking a toll on wildlife.
It's one of the most harrowing things I've seen—an oil-drenched pelican struggling for its life #SantaBarbaraOilSpill pic.twitter.com/J8ghC3FHnG — Scott London (@scottlondon) May 20, 2015
Clean-up crews remove a dead fish wednesday from #RefugioStateBeach following #oil #spill pic.twitter.com/Jhfb4mhEnO
— SBCFireInfo (@EliasonMike) May 20, 2015
Clean-up crews remove a dead octopus from #RefugioStateBeach Wednesday morning. pic.twitter.com/JZFvejyI3a — SBCFireInfo (@EliasonMike) May 20, 2015
Other images showed the white sand beaches had turned a grotesque black.
Oil coming ashore at Refugio State Beach #SantaBarbaraOilSpill pic.twitter.com/ex1Vy6mvqf
— Jessica Haro (@JessicaHaro07) May 20, 2015
Facing west on Refugio Beach: pic.twitter.com/ydGh4lm2ct — Jessica Haro (@JessicaHaro07) May 20, 2015
Oil spill pollutes Beach in California; Coast Guard Responding https://t.co/xbrVYlWiZ5 pic.twitter.com/nkIDYbyUSL — Faiza Oulahsen (@faizaoulahsen) May 20, 2015
