1. DEEPWATER HORIZON FERN IN ACTION A State’s Perspective
Marion Aller, DVM, DABT
Director, Division of Food Safety
Florida Department of Ag. & Cons. Services

2. DAY 1
Tues April 20 (10pm) Mobile Offshore Drilling Unit (MOBU) Deepwater Horizon Explodes in crew, 11 missing. Early reports – blowout due to oil and methane erupting thru pipe connecting the DWH to the wellhead 5000’ below. Oil leakage????

3. Days 2 - 8
4/22 DWH sinks, taking the damaged riser with it.
4/24 Oil leakage estimated at barrels/day (42K gallons)
4/28 NOAA estimates oil leakage at barrels/day.
BP estimates days to drill permanent relief well.
Everybody watching, assessment mode.

4. Days
4/29 President declares incident a “Spill of National Significance”
LA issues emergency declaration – MS, AL, FL follow suit next day
4/30 FL activates EOC
FDACS assesses capabilities
4/30 – Lab is asked what it is currently able to do – some prior experience w/ sensory (small fuel spill), tentatively identifies NOAA method as most appropriate. However, new chemistry, no experience, incomplete inventory of needed equipment

5. Days 11 - 13 5/1 USCG Adm. Thad Allen appointed Incident Commander
5/2 NOAA closes federal waters
BP begins underwater use of dispersants to mitigate oil reaching surface
FL continues “watchful waiting”

6. Days 16 – 24 0 5/2 NOAA Closes waters 5/6 FDA identifies “NOAA” method
5/7 FDA Mobile Lab plans move to TLH
5/12 FERN activated
5/13 FDA Mobile Lab arrives
5/14 8 FERN Labs identified to run NOAA method
1st Draft Reopening Protocol
Mobile lab not equipped to run NOAA method – works instead on e-Nose
FDA NOAA labs (AK, ATL, Denv, KC) State: FL, UCDavis, AZ, Wiscon
REOPENING PROTOCOL - underwent great deal of discussion re: derivation of appropriate levels of concern

7. Days
5/20 BP pulling 5K barrels from insertion tube – concedes underestimate of total leakage
5/21 FERN notifies labs FDA will purchase needed equipment (d 9)
5/25 “Top kill” procedure starts
529 “Top Kill” halted
Underwater camera installed – leakage estimates increase to 12 – 19K barrels/day

8. Days 42 - 51 6/2-3 Oil washes up on Dauphin Island
Cap installed on riser oil flow
1st piece equipment arrives (d 21,12)
Equipment arrives, but w/o installation

9. 6/6-8. BP manipulates vents, increases. capture rate to 10k, then 14
6/6-8 BP manipulates vents, increases capture rate to 10k, then 14.8K barrels/d
6/10 Oil arrives Perdido Pass (AL-FL border. 2nd piece equipment arrives (d 29, 20)

10. Days
6/18 Florida FWCC closes 200 square miles of state gulf (not inland) waters from Al-FL state line to west of Pensacola Bay.
Number of Labs – Alternate methods
Number samples/week/lab -
For the next 2-4 weeks lab capacity will drive a number of discussions. Announcements being made to Health Officers, raising expectations that my lab is saying it cannot meet – doubtful other labs will…. APHL, AOAC begin to explore setting up groups to identify alternative methods. FDA doing same.

11. Days
6/21 Last item arrives – method validation begins in earnest (d 31)
7/8 FL begins consideration to reopen closed waters
At this point, concerns rise regarding what lab will run samples, when. Capacity issues unresolved…. Monitoring plans discussed

12. Days
7/12 Lab reports difficulty w/ background PAH interference. Visit sister lab.
7/15 Valves on capping stack closed at 2:26 pm CDT. Oil stops flowing.
7/26-9 Method validation, LODs complete
(d 75-78, 66-9) I m after equipment
7/31 FL reopens harvest to fish
Lab loses power

13. Days 105 -122 8/3 Samples arrive in lab
8/19 Receive alternative method
8/20 Report first samples (17 days after receipt -

14. Where do we go from here??? Triggers to activate FERN
“Matching” labs to methods, surge capacity
Equipment purchases
Identification: methods, LODs
Reporting results
Mechanism for alternative methods

15. Where do we go from here??
Messaging/managing expectations (what a lab can do, what it can’t)
Coordinating information sharing among chemists, toxicologist, public health officials, regulators, affected communities (industry, consumers, buyers)

16. September 3, 2010