Alabama fire chiefs: BP keeping local officials away from oil spill response

[highplainsdem]

Source: AP

Alabama fire chiefs: BP keeping local officials away from oil spill response
By Associated Press
9:16 AM CDT, June 9, 2010

FOLEY, Ala. (AP) — Fire chiefs along Alabama's coast are complaining about BP's response to the Gulf oil spill crisis.

The 36-member Baldwin County Fire Chiefs Association sent a letter Wednesday to the unified command and Alabama Gov. Bob Riley saying the company appears to be purposely keeping trained local officials away from the spill response. They also say they're getting far too little official information about what's going on.

The president of the association, Gib Hixon, says local emergency workers get far more information about the spill from news coverage than from the company or officials at the command set up to handle coastal protection systems and the cleanup.

A spokesman at the unified command in Mobile didn't immediately return messages seeking comment.



Read more: http://www.whnt.com/news/sns-ap-al--gulfoilspill-firechiefs,0,7256480.story

[Phoebe Loosinhouse]

1. This bs has got to stop

I honestly cannot begin to fathom the actions of either BP or whoever is supposed to be in charge of a governmental response.

[wordpix]

3. BP wants as few witnesses to the crime as possible & Ala. politicians are bought

and paid for. Feds must come in and strong arm this gang conducting their coverup, but they're bought, too...

[Botany]

2. BP has been lying from the get go; those fuckers need to be horse whipped

[Jefferson23]

4. BP is disgusting, recall if you will, right after Katrina, the US Army Corps

of Engineers kept the local fireman away too. Later, the fireman were able to contradict the Corps claim about the water levels.


Fucking liars, the lot of them.

[City Lights]

5. I'm sick of BP getting away with this crap.

:argh:

[EnviroBat]

6. It high time.

That groups of people start heading down there and kicking the living shit out of BP Officials!

Who's with me?

[pattmarty]

7. Then the Gov orders the National Guard in to "keep away" the BP thugs.

Enough of this bullshit. The government SHOULD be in charge and ought to start acting like it.

[rudy23]

8. Mr. President---MAKE THEM STOP!!! I don't care how angry, or how many asses you have to kick

or not kick. Just MAKE THEM STOP!!!

[BeFree]

12. ALERT!!!

Mr. Obama, we are getting nickled and dimed to death down here!! Wassup, dude?

[lark]

14. Time for talk's over, time for action is now

Kick BP off of any decision making regarding the clean up, they don't get to decide, they don't get to hide. We're sick of the placating words and equally sick of the phony outrage but no action.

[Cattledog]

24. Obama doesn't have the balls

so don't count on him stepping in.

[awoke_in_2003]

9. is there any doubt...

who really runs this country? The clowns in DC are just part of the sideshow.

[Frances]

11. Baldwin County AL is totally right wing Republican

so any clowns they send to DC are totally right wing Republicans

[awoke_in_2003]

17. the republican clowns...

and the democratic clowns dance to the same tune. When the cameras are on, they are fierce opponents. When the camera are off, Pelosi and Boehner go have dinner together and laugh at how gullible we are.

[Frances]

22. So, if Gore had been President

2001-2008 would have been exactly the same as having W as President.

I heard MANY people argue that point in 2000, and, after reading your post, there are indeed some people who didn't learn anything from that election.

[awoke_in_2003]

23. can't say for sure...

but he was a DLC'er, and they were 100% behind the Iraq occupation

[Frances]

25. So Gore = Bush in your opinion?

Why are you on this board? It doesn't sound like you are a Democrat at all.

[JDPriestly]

18. Wasn't Baldwin County the place where Siegelman votes were

allegedly switched in the night of an election?

[Frances]

21. yes, it is

[Crowman1979]

10. That's it! I'm heading to Orange Beach, AL armed with a camera and voice recorder on Saturday.

I'm gonna see this for myself. If they try to stop me, then I'm gonna ask them who and under what law are they authorized to block the beach. Then I'll call the sheriff and find out what they say.

[wordpix]

13. good luck but be prepared to be arrested & have your lawyer on stand by

[Crowman1979]

15. I'm quite a fast runner though.

[pezDispenser]

16. be sure to let us all know how this works out for you.

[Robbien]

19. More details on the letter: BP using outside contractors instead of locals

FOLEY, Alabama - The Baldwin County Fire Chiefs Association sent a letter to BP as well as Alabama Governor Bob Riley Wednesday concerning their lack of involvement in the oil spill crisis. "We are very disturbed at the total lack of information and absolute lack of response for information from the BP and the Unified Command", the letter stated.

"It appears that there is a policy to keep local professionals as far from this disaster response as possible." The letter from the president of the association, Gib Hixon, explains that the local fire departments feel purposely left out when it comes to receiving critical information. Hixon also stated that emergency workers get more information about the spill from news coverage than from the company or officials at the command set up to handle coastal protection systems and the cleanup.

The letter also said, "Interestingly our services are free or at most cost reimbursable. you have chosen to use commercial operations at exorbitant costs...To be kept totally out of the loop in this disaster makes no sense. Our citizens have come to expect a high level of response from us. With us having no information for them we are not meeting their needs. They deserve better than they are getting." The Baldwin County Fire Chiefs Association is a 36-member organization. The letter specifically requested that the local fire departments be kept informed "at the highest levels". "To keep us uninvolved and uninformed is irresponsible and unacceptable."

http://www.wkrg.com/gulf_oil_spill/article/ala.-fire-departments-feel-uninformed-about-oil-spill/894568/Jun-09-2010_12-24-pm/

[annabanana]

20. oh friggen kick for the sheer aggro . .

I sincerely hope that Rachel highlghts this on her next BP disaster segment.