BP: No Oil Leaking From Well in Gulf of Mexico For First Time Since April

VOA News 

Oil company BP says there is no oil leaking from a ruptured well in the Gulf of Mexico for the first time since a rig exploded in April, sending oil gushing into the Gulf.

A BP official, Kent Wells, said all valves have been completely shut on a new cap placed on top of the wellhead. He said BP is conducting critical pressure testing on the well over the next several hours to see if the entire system is intact without leaks. The testing involves closing valves on the cap to determine if it can withstand pressure from the well and effectively contain the leak, estimated at 60,000 barrels of oil each day.

The latest effort to shut the well is a major move in stopping the worst oil spill in U.S. history. Steps must still be taken to completely cap the oil, in the form of relief wells, one of which should be complete in the next few weeks.

The oil leak began after an April 20 explosion of the BP-leased Deepwater Horizon oil rig killed 11 crewmen. The disaster has fouled vast expanses of the U.S. Gulf coast, killed birds and sea life and devastated the region's fishing and tourism.

Earlier Thursday, BP resumed the pressure testing of its containment cap on the ruptured oil well, after fixing a leaky pipe on the side of the structure.

Retired Coast Guard Admiral Thad Allen, the Obama administration's top official in overseeing the response to the oil leak, said if the cap can seal the leak, it might allow BP to contain the oil within the well itself, instead of sending oil to surface ships.

Allen said even if the cap cannot seal the leak, BP is still in a much better position to capture the leaking oil than before the cap was placed on the well on Monday.