Hurricane Ike Damaged About 10 Oil Platforms

Dow Jones Newswires

WASHINGTON (AFP via Dow Jones Newswires), September 14, 2008

Hurricane Ike appears to have damaged about 10 oil platforms in the Gulf of Mexico, U.S. officials said Sunday, raising concerns that the storm could hurt oil production and lead to a spike in prices at U.S. gas stations.

Eileen Angelico, a spokeswoman with the U.S. Mineral Management Service, or MMS, said officials were able only to make a rough estimate of the number of damaged platforms based on "flyovers" of the area, which has about 3,800 oil platforms.

"We expect (the number of) damaged platforms to be around 10," she said, adding that the reports of damage at this point are "preliminary."

"We don't know yet the extent of this damage," she said.

The MMS said Hurricane Katrina in 2005 ravaged 44 platforms, while Hurricane Rita, which struck Gulf Coast oil installations later that same year, damaged 64 platforms. 

Ike hammered the oil hub early Saturday, impairing U.S. oil production as it stranded thousands of people and caused billions of dollars in damage.

Read more on the aftermath of Hurricane Ike in Rigzone's Special Coverage After the Storm.


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