More than 2,000 people have been deployed to protect the shoreline and coastal wildlife, according to a statement from the Joint Information Center.
Surface estimates of the size of the slick and skimming efforts were hindered as the Coast Guard ordered boats and aircraft back to port because of stormy weather. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration previously estimated the well is spewing 5,000 barrels of oil a day. At that rate, the volume of the spill would exceed Alaska?s 1989 Exxon Valdez accident by the third week of June.