BP Oil Spill Could Hit Florida Shores

A physical oceanographer from the University of South Florida told a conference call that the BP oil spill may end up on the Florida shoreline if the spill connects with a Loop Current that sweeps around the Gulf of Mexico. If that occurs, the oil spill would be drawn south along Florida’s west coast shoreline and through the Florida Straits separating Florida and Cuba.
Robert Weisberg, the USF oceanographer, stated that the migration appears likely. The question remains how soon that will occur. “Once it’s at the entrance to the Florida Straits it’s only another week or so before it could be in the vicinity of Miami or Palm Beach and one more week or so until it could be as far north as Cape Hatteras,” Weisberg said.
However, speculation depends a great deal on the prevailing winds. No one is certain where the spill will end up coming ashore.