[StBernard] St. Bernard Parish President Craig Taffaro is still calling for 300, 000+ feet of additional boom

[Westley Annis]

St. Bernard Parish President Craig Taffaro is still calling for 300,000+
feet of additional boom 

The St. Bernard Parish Deepwater Claims Center for affected fisherman will
open for operation at 8:00 a.m. tomorrow morning

 

St.  Bernard Parish local fisherman deployed an additional 46,040 feet boom
today, 8,000 feet of which was hard boom. St. Bernard Parish President Craig
Taffaro is still waiting for the 150,000 feet of soft boom and 150,000 feet
of hard boom that he has been requesting, which is needed on an immediate
basis to protect our waters and marshes. 

 

The presence of oil sheen has been confirmed south of Southwest Pass. This
indicates that the oil is now west of the mouth of the river. The Chandeleur
Islands were reassessed today. Oil sheen and small ribbons of emulsified oil
were confirmed at the Chandeleurs. There is no report of an increase in
heavy oil there at this time.

 

9,000 barrels of heavy oil was burned off today as part of two successful
burns. Due to the coffer dome deployment at the site of the rig explosion,
no subsurface dispersants are in use at this time. 

 

BP has set up a claims hotline where commercial fisherman can call to make a
claim. The number to call to make a claim is 1-800-440-0858.There is also a
St. Bernard Parish Deepwater Claims Center established that will be in
operation as of tomorrow morning at 8:00 a.m. The hours of operation will be
from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. However, if you have not called the
1-800-440-0858 claims hotline, you will not be able to see an adjuster at
the Claims Center. You will first need to obtain a claims number through the
Claims Hotline. Once you have obtained a claims number, you may report to
1345 Bayou Road at the Rosa Ducros Tennant Museum. There are people there to
guide you through your claims process. Again, the number to call to make a
claim is 1-800-440-0858. 


 

Before you go to the Claims Center, you must have the following documents on
hand: 1) A legible copy of a valid driver's license, 2) A valid fishing
license, 3) Any financial information i.e. W-2, trip tickets, receipts, or a
letter of income from your ship's captain with the name of the captain. It
is being asked that all fishermen who attempt to access this program to
please call St. Bernard Parish EOC and report the effectiveness of this
program. That number is 1-504-278-4268. Additionally, Senator David Vitter's
office has set up a toll-free number for assistance with the BP claims
process. That number is 1-866-345-0931.

 

Beware of volunteer organizations providing training at cost. BP has agreed
to provide volunteer training at no-cost, specifics will be announced as
soon as this training has been scheduled. 

 

All registered fisherman have been designated into teams and put to work in
their assigned rotations. To become hired by St. Bernard Parish in this
effort, you must be able to prove that you are a resident of St. Bernard
Parish. There will be no exceptions. Fishermen can sign up to be hired at
the Breton Sound Marina at the Command Center. All volunteering fishermen
must include the Vessel Name, Owner/Captain Name, Contact phone, email and
address, Vessel Length, Horsepower and Draft. 

 

A list will be published this evening on the St. Bernard Parish Government
website detailing which fisherman will be working on a day to day basis, as
outlined by the teams that were chosen earlier this week. Please refer to
this list before reporting to work at the Breton Sound Marina in the
morning. 

 

First Rotation Fishermen who worked from May 1st to May 4th may pick up
their pay checks on Saturday May 8th at the Government Complex in Chalmette
between 8:00 a.m. and 10:00 a.m. You must present a valid photo ID. If you
signed your boat up and are expecting a separate check, you must provide
documentation of your boat being a corporation or business, such as a check
stub. You will also need your tax ID number.  The fishermen who received
HAZMAT training will be able to pick up their certification cards at this
time as well. IF YOU ARE WORKING ON A BOAT TOMORROW, AND YOU CANNOT PICK UP
YOUR CHECK BEFORE 10:00AM, YOUR CHECK WILL BE BROUGHT TO BRETON SOUND MARINA
FOR YOU TO RECEIVE THERE.

Fishermen will be personally contacted to attend training sessions. No one
may attend if they have not been contacted. Additionally, access has been
restricted at Shell Beach and Breton Sound. Fishermen are asked to not
report to the launch points without proper authorization. Because St.
Bernard commercial fishermen have been financially impacted by the spill,
St. Bernard is focusing on linking the fishermen with BP's Vessel of
Opportunity program so they will be compensated for their efforts.

 

Over the weekend, Lenor Duplessis and Karen Bazile are available for
information for the press. Duplessis can be reached at 504-874-0894. Bazile
can be reached at 504-874-0980.

 

The Shell Beach Command Center will start operations in the near future. To
visit this site, prior approval and coordination must be gotten through
Belsom next week. Call ahead to ensure your needs will be able to be met. 

 

Please monitor the news for additional information. Updates also will be
posted on the parish website at www.sbpg.net.

  

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