Fishing Banned in Gulf

In light of the Gulf oil spill, feds have banned all commercial and recreational fishing from Louisiana to Florida for the next few days, to protect seafood. Oil is slowly snaking its way toward Louisiana's salt marshes, a major breeding area for crabs, shrimp, oysters, and other seafood. The spill is roughly the size of Puerto Rico, and is expected to surpass the infamous 1989 Exxon Valdez disaster as the worst oil spill in history. Hans Graber, executive director of the university's Center for Southeastern Tropical Advanced Remote Sensing, said that "The spill and the spreading is getting so much faster and expanding much quicker than they estimated." Oil giant BP is being criticized for not having done more to prevent the disaster, while BP PLC Chairman Lamar McKay blamed the spill on equipment malfunction.