GULF DISASTER

Oil Leak Threatens Human Health

Hopes rest on giant box as oil comes ashore.

Oil from the Deepwater Horizon has officially hit U.S. shores, and the feds are preparing to contend with a range of human health risks the slick may pose. Fallout from the spill could affect humans in any number of ways, causing headaches or runny noses or even increased risk of cancer from contaminated seafood. Said Dr. Jimmy Guidry, Louisiana's state health director: "We don't know how long this spill will last or how much oil we'll be dealing with, so there's a lot of unknowns… But we're going to make things as safe as humanly possible." Some Louisiana residents are already complaining of a foul odor hanging in the air. Meanwhile, undersea robots are marking an area in preparation for a 100-foot containment device to be lowered down. BP hopes that the giant box can suck up 85 percent of the leaking oil and funnel it upward from the ocean into tankers.