New oil spill spotted in Gulf near BP Macondo well

While there have been no new reports of damaged oil rigs in the Gulf of Mexico, a massive oil slick has been spotted.

The US Coast Guard has confirmed that there appears to be a massive oil sheen on the surface of the Gulf of Mexico, approximately 20 miles north of the site of the 2010 BP oil spill.

The half-mile wide, hundred mile long oil slick was reported by local residents, who spotted it on Saturday, according to the Times-Picayune.

During the early stages of the 2010 BP Gulf oil spill, there were reports of three leaks at the Macondo well site. One was plugged within a week. The second held the international spotlight, until it was finally capped five months later, after spewing 4.9 million barrels of oil and a million gallons of chemical dispersant into the Gulf.

The third leak was largely ignored by the media.  However, oil industry expert, Matt Simmons claimed in an MSBNC news interview, that the third leak, located about 5 miles from the Macondo well, was the “elephant behind the mouse.”

Simmons died unexpectedly on August 8^th, 2010.  The circumstances surrounding his death suggest to some people that he may have been assassinated for being a whistle blower during the BP oil spill.