Gulf of Mexico platform fire out
Boats spray water on oil and gas platform operated by Mariner Energy off the Louisiana coast.
The US Coast Guard says the fire on an oil and gas well in the Gulf of Mexico is out and there is no indication of oil being leaked.
Despite a concern over the possibility of fresh pollution in the region, there is no evidence of oil sheen. US Coast Guard Capt. Peter Troedsson said there were no visible leaks, adding, "We continue to investigate and to monitor that situation," quoted the CNN.
Mariner Energy, the owner of the platform, said in a statement "Automated shutoff equipment on the platform safely turned off the flow of oil and gas from the platform's seven producing wells before the fire occurred and the crew evacuated."
Despite previous reports of an explosion causing the fire on the platform, Mariner Energy said that the fire was not sparked by an explosion. The cause of the fire is not yet known, officials said.
All the 13 crew members who had been forced to abandon the rig were rescued; there is no report of serious injuries among them.
The oil well, the Vermilion Block 380, is nearly 100 miles off the coast of Louisiana.
The well caught fire Thursday, nearly five months after a blast on the BP-leased Deepwater Horizon rig in April that killed 11 workers and unleashed an environmental catastrophe in the Gulf of Mexico.
MSM/JG/MGH
