CA Oil Spill Worst In Recent History: 5 Things To Know

HUNTINGTON BEACH, CA — Crews scrambled over the weekend to curb environmental damage inflicted by a 126,000-gallon oil spill in Orange County. It was one of the largest oil spills in recent history.

Front-line workers will labor this week to pull oiled animals from the crude and work to contain the oil as it continued to wash up on the shore along a shuttered stretch of coastline between Huntington Beach and Newport Beach.

The U.S Coast Guard was leading the response to the spill, which covered about 5.8 nautical miles of shoreline.

See: Orange County Oil Spill: Photos As Cleanup Ensues

Huntington Beach Mayor Kim Carr described the spill as a "potential ecologic disaster" and said some of the oil had reached the Talbert Marsh Ecological Reserve and the Santa Ana River Trail.

Five Things You Need To Know About The Massive Spill

1. When and how did the oil spill happen?

Crude oil issued from Amplify Energy's facility, Beta Offshore — which is situated about 4 miles off the coast — was caused by a pipeline leak. Authorities were investigating whether a ship's anchor struck the pipeline as it laid on the ocean floor. The anchor may have caused a major leak of crude into coastal waters, officials said at a news conference Monday.

The anchor became "of of the distinct possibilities" behind the spill, Amplify Energy CEO Martyn Willsher told reporters.

“We’re looking into if it could have been an anchor from a ship, but that’s in the assessment phase right now,” Coast Guard Lt. Cmdr. Jeannie Shaye said.

Massive cargo ships routinely pass through both the Long Beach and Los Angeles ports, Coast Guard officials said.

On Friday evening, Some Southland residents said they spotted a sheen of oil and smelled petroleum, but a slick wasn't reported until Saturday.

Rick Torgerson, the owner of Blue Star Yacht Charter, said locals asked him on Friday, "Do you smell that?" By Saturday morning, boats were returning to the marina with their hulls slick with crude oil, he told The Associated Press.

Amplify Energy announced Monday that the compromised pipeline and the three oil platforms it serves were shut down. Operations at the Beta Field were also stopped. Willsher, said Sunday that divers were still trying to determine precisely where the leak occurred.

2. Which areas were affected?

The spill prompted the closure of popular beaches between Seapoint Street in Huntington Beach to the Santa Ana River. Laguna Beach closed all of its beaches Sunday evening as the oil neared its shoreline. Newport Beach Harbor was also closed to allow better access for vessels working cleanup of the spill.

Carr said the closures could last anywhere "from a few weeks to a few months."

Newport Harbor was temporarily closed to vessel traffic in an attempt to keep oil from entering the harbor, Newport Beach officials said. Beaches will remain open with water advisories in place, the city said. The spill did not affect Long Beach's beaches and swimming areas since currents were pulling south from Huntington Beach, city officials said.

The spill also affected protected wetlands. Chunks of oil reportedly seeped into the Talbert Marsh, a 25-acre ecological reserve for marine life.

"Our wetlands are being degraded, and portions of our coastline are completely covered in oil," Carr said Sunday.

Damage to the reserve was curbed Sunday as workers closed the tidal inlet with sand berms, the Los Angeles Times reported.

Skimming equipment and booms were deployed to prevent the flow of oil into the Bolsa Chica Ecological Reserve and Huntington Beach Wetlands, although officials said wildlife was already being affected.

Some of the areas affected by the spill are home to threatened and endangered species, including a plump shorebird called the snowy plover, the California least tern and humpback whale.

As of Monday morning, officials collected and treated at least four birds that were oiled. One of them, a brown pelican, had to be euthanized because of "chronic injuries," according to the state Department of Fish and Wildlife.

Seal Beach, including a marine habitat nursery, has been largely spared of closure as of Monday afternoon.

Officials set up an Oiled Wildlife Care Network hotline at 877-823-6926 for people to call if they see wildlife affected by the oil. Members of the public were urged not to approach any animals themselves.

Orange County Supervisor Katrina Foley — who represented the affected cities of Newport Beach, Huntington Beach and Seal Beach — said the spill has already killed some fish and birds.

"Significant ecological impacts in HB. Oil has washed up now onto the HB beachfront. We've started to find dead birds & fish washing up on the shore," Foley tweeted at 12:48 a.m. She added that the damage from the spill could be irreversible, calling the beaches and marshlands "part of our heritage" that draw countless people to the shore.

3. How will the spill affect local communities?

Health officials warned people not to swim, surf or exercise by the affected beaches in Orange County because of potential health hazards. People were also urged not to fish in the area as the waters are considered toxic.

"Unfortunately, the size and potential impact of this oil spill make it necessary for people to stay out of the water and avoid contact with the oil," Newport Beach Mayor Brad Avery said in a statement. "The City's top priority is to ensure the safety of our residents and visitors during the cleanup effort."

The state Department of Fish and Wildlife warned of a "threat to public health" from consuming any fish or shellfish taken from near the shoreline from Huntington Beach to about 20 miles south of Dana Point.

4. What are authorities doing to mitigate damage?

The compromised 17.5-mile pipeline that is 80 to 100 feet below the surface was suctioned out so no more oil would spill. At the same time, the location of the leak was being investigated, Amplify Energy said.

Some 3,700 feet of boom were deployed on the ocean surface over the weekend to capture the crude oil while divers sought to determine just how the leak happened. On the coast, there has been a race to find animals that were oiled and to keep the crude oil from devastating more vulnerable wetlands.

The Coast Guard deployed nine boats Sunday for oil spill recovery, and three shoreline assessment teams were dispatched to study the state of the water.

The cleanup command consisted of the U.S. Coast Guard, California Department of Fish and Wildlife's Office of Spill Prevention and Response and Amplify Energy. Supporting agencies were the cities of Long Beach, Newport Beach and Huntington Beach.

Currents were reportedly moving southeast into the waters off Newport Beach, according to multiple reports.

U.S. Rep. Michelle Steel (R) urged President Joe Biden to issue a major disaster declaration to aid Orange County with the spill.

"Officials are already responding to protect sea life. Dead fish and birds are already being reported on beaches and shorelines," she wrote in a letter to Biden. "I have serious concerns about the environmental impacts of the spill and applaud the workers who are doing their best to prevent the oil from hitting sensitive wetlands."

Officials are not requesting resident volunteers; more information can be found on Cal Spill Watch's website.

5. Could officials have reacted more quickly?

Residents, business owners and environmentalists questioned whether authorities responded to the slick in time to contain the disastrous spill.

"By the time it comes to the beach, it's done tremendous damage. Our frustration is, it could have been averted if there was a quick response," said Gary Brown, a Huntington Beach resident and president of the environmental group Orange County Coastkeeper.

Amplify Energy's Beta Operating Co. has been cited 72 times for safety and environmental violations that were severe enough to curtail or stop drilling to fix the problem, regulatory records showed.

"In a year that has been filled with incredibly challenging issues, this oil spill constitutes one of the most devastating situations that our community has dealt with in decades," Carr said. "We are doing everything in our power to protect the health and safety of our residents, our visitors and our natural habitats."

The spill was reminiscent of another ecological disaster decades ago. An estimated 3,400 birds were killed when the American Trader oil tanker ran over its anchor and punctured its hull on Feb. 7, 1990, spilling an estimated 416,600 gallons of crude oil off the coast of Huntington Beach.

The Wetlands and Wildlife Care Center was established as a result of that spill to help injured and orphaned wildlife, including oil-soiled birds. It treated birds injured in the 1990 spill, according to the center's website. What began as a makeshift facility has evolved into the center that exists today.

The City News Service, The Associated Press and Patch Editor Kat Schuster contributed to this report.

Read More About The Southland Oil Spill:

• Huntington Beach Closed Due To 'Disastrous' 126K Oil Spill
• Orange County Oil Spill: Photos As Cleanup Ensues
• Orange County Oil Spill: Seal Beach Spared From Damage
• Orange County Beaches Closed Due To 'Disastrous' 126K Oil Spill
• Newport Beach Harbor Closed Due To 'Disastrous' 126K Oil Spill
• Laguna Beaches Close Due To Massive Oil Spill In Orange County
• Orange County Oil Spill: Seal Beach Spared From Damage
• Orange County Beaches Closed Due To 'Disastrous' 126K Oil Spill