Relaxing on Holmes Beach, Anna Maria Island.
Currently, the beaches along the Florida coast are not under immediate threat from the BP oil spill. The further from the spill, the lower the threat. Western panhandle beaches are on high alert, but as yet, no oil is threatening them. So don’t let what is happening hundreds of miles away keep you away from the beach. The beaches and the weather are beautiful and we are glad our unusually cold winter is over.
There has been some reporting that the oil could get caught up in the Gulf Loop current and be transported down the west coast of Florida, through the Florida Keys, and into the Gulf Stream where it would travel up the east coast. Adverse wind patterns could then blow some of the oil onto the beaches. However, the oil as it now exists is far enough away from the Loop Current that this does not appear to be a likely outcome in the near future.
Authorities, cleanup crews and volunteer organizations are ready and waiting to spring into action if any of the oil comes our way. To heighten our concern, turtle nesting season is upon us and shorebird nesting season is in full swing.
If you’d like to stay current on where the oil is, here are a few handy websites that will inform you:
http://www.dep.state.fl.us/deepwaterhorizon/default.htm – scroll down to the NOAA Trajectory Forecast and open the most recent pdf file. It will show you where the oil is and where it is moving to. There is enough info on this page to answer most any question you have about the oil spill.
http://coolgate.mote.org/beachconditions/ – current beach conditions on the Gulf coast of Florida, updated twice daily by local observers, usually at 10 am and 3 pm.
