President Obama Comments On Oil Spill and Crisis

LOUISIANA - President Barack Obama is calling the surging oil spill in the Gulf Of Mexico a massive and potentially unprecedented environmental disaster.

Obama is in Louisiana, getting an assesment of the cleanup efforts from the B-P oil rig, which continues to leak 5-thousand barrels of oil a day.

Today, he made it clear that B-P would be paying for the cleanup of the region.

The oil slick is approximately 50 miles from the Florida shore.

All fishing in federal waters, from Louisiana to Pensacola, has been *suspended for at least ten days.

The attorneys general from five gulf coast states are meeting in Alabama to discuss the coastal crisis.

We've got team coverage for you tonight with reports from all along the gulf coast...

We begin begin in Louisiana.

President Barack Obama got a firsthand assessment of the environmental catastrophe facing the Gulf Coast.

SOT Obama "We are dealing with a massive and potentially unprecedented environmental disaster."

And he promised action.

Obama "Your government will do whatever it takes and for as long as it takes to stop this crisis."

The President heard about progress on lowering a box-like device intended to capture some of the estimated 5-thousand gallons of oil spewing daily from the site of a BP oil platform explosion.

Obama "So let me be clear. BP is responsible for this leak. BP will be paying the bill. But as President of the United States I'm gonna spare no effort to respond to this crisis for as long as it continues."

But, an estimated 1-point-six million gallons of oil is already moving north towards Northwest Florida, Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana.

Joshua Alfonso, Commercial Fisherman "We're not going to let it come in and destroy everything we got."

Determined fishermen are manning the front lines in this battle.

The fishing industry is already a casualty of the massive oil slick.

And now , the first wildlife victims are turning up covered in oil. This Northern Gannett sought help.

Erica Miller, Tri-State Bird Rescue "The bird approached their vessel, and hopped up near the boat."

And rescuers know there will be many more to come.

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