Gulf Oil Spill Dive: Reporter Takes A Dip Without Hazmat Suit (VIDEO)

RICH MATTHEWS (AP) -- UNDER THE MURKY DEPTHS OF THE GULF OF MEXICO — Some 40 miles out into the Gulf Of Mexico, I jump off the boat into the thickest patch of red oil I've ever seen. I open my eyes and realize my mask is already smeared. I can't see anything and we're just five seconds into the dive.

Dropping beneath the surface the only thing I see is oil. To the left, right, up and down – it sits on top of the water in giant pools, and hangs suspended fifteen feet beneath the surface in softball sized blobs. There is nothing alive under the slick, although I see a dead jellyfish and handful of small bait fish.

I'm alone because the other divers with me wouldn't get in the water without Hazmat suits on, and with my mask oiled over and the water already dark, I don't dive deep.

It's quiet, and to be honest scary, extremely low visibility. I spend just 10 minutes swimming around taking pictures, taking video. I want people to see the spill in a new way, a way they haven't yet.

I also want to get out of the water. Badly.

WATCH:

I make my way to the back of the boat unaware of just how covered I am. To be honest, I look a little like one of those poor pelicans we've all been seeing for days now. The oil is so thick and sticky, almost like a cake batter. It does not wipe off. You have to scrape it off, in layers until you finally get close to the skin. Then you pour on some Dawn dishwashing soap and scrub. I think to myself: No fish, no bird, no turtle would ever be able to clean this off of themselves. If any animal, any were to end up in this same puddle there is almost no way they could escape.

The cleaning process goes on for half an hour before the captain will even think about letting me back in the boat. I'm clean, so I stand up. But the bottoms of my feet still had oil, and I fall back in the water. The process starts again. Another 30 minutes of cleaning and finally I'm ready to step into the boat.

Comments

[oil dm aj]

12:23 PM on 07/12/2010

Don't try this stunt without support. Diving in recreational equipment holds the oil/dispersant mix against your skin and makes it easy to inhale. Want to see it done right? Watch this: http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/us/2010/07/12/lyon.oil.scube.dive.cnn?iref=allsearch

[fran]

08:03 PM on 06/10/2010

Yes it is scary but then again so are you diving in that muck!

[katemail00]

04:55 PM on 06/10/2010

Anything having to do with this spill makes me feel sick and ill. The planet is being trashed and we will all suffer greatly for it.

[jetboatsrule]

11:39 PM on 06/09/2010

Oh my god! What have we done? This is soooooooooooo bad, like killing a child drunk driving, or worse! I hate you Big Profit! I curse you and WILL NEVER BUY ANYTHING FROM YOU AGAIN, EVEN IF YOU WERE THE LAST GAS STATION AROUND, PERIOD!

[kingbuzz]

10:12 PM on 06/09/2010

ill be the first one to admit that guy has waaaayyyy bigger b.a.l.l.$ than i do. keep your mouth closed. R.I.P.

[kingbuzz]

10:09 PM on 06/09/2010

i hope the boat has a two-stroke motor, cuz a four stroke is toast.

[Rambutt]

09:17 PM on 06/09/2010

Great reporting. Hats off to the brave Marine Biologists.
Nice to know some people care.

[Ness38]

09:10 PM on 06/09/2010

It looks like he is swimming in a giant toilet bowl of human waste matter....

[Justin Satzman]

08:26 PM on 06/09/2010

I think Beck, Rush and Bill-O should do this too, just when they do it, no tank or snorkel.

[mrJJ]

07:52 PM on 06/09/2010

Strange...C&P from 1 site:

Dear: ATS Members

I believe it is very important for the citizens of Gulf Region to watch the News Broadcast below. This situation is so much graver then what BP and the EPA is telling you all. The dispersant of COREXIT chemicals in the Gulf of Mexico will be responsible for the future deaths of thousands maybe millions of people. It is so vital that the citizens of this region demand a copy of the MSDS on the chemical dispersant Corexit.

Here is the MSDS report of hazards of this product this is just one example:

more:

Corexit ingredient links:

http://www.abovetopsecret.com/forum/thread576047/pg1

http://www.favstocks.com/presto-corexit%C2%AE-dispersant-ingredients-revealed/0816931/

http://lmrk.org/corexit_9500_uscueg.539287.pdf

[kingbuzz]

10:18 PM on 06/09/2010

isaygoddamn, and POT is illegal? are we really living in a free country? thank you for that.

[fourtruth]

07:37 PM on 06/09/2010

I don't know what this guy was thinking! Is he giving himself up as a guenie pig? Wow, I hope he remains ok, but I fear he will not.

A reporter the other day was just standing in the stuff in waders and said he could feel the heat building to almost a burn through the boots, and others have reported the same on their hands. I guess this guy was in the water and/or mostly wet, as he did not report that particular sensation.

Great video.

[Manwhatthe]

05:52 PM on 06/09/2010

A lot of you guys need to get a grip. Jesus. It's just oil. It's not Ebola or Hantavirus. Cripes Sake.

[doctor gogol]

06:18 PM on 06/09/2010

Its not like salad oil, you birdbrain! Crude oil is a toxic substance.

[GirlOutWest]

06:20 PM on 06/09/2010

You jest...please say you're kidding.

[fourtruth]

07:40 PM on 06/09/2010

I have been in the construction business for years and have seen salesmen drink stuff just to make a sale. I often wonder where they are today. Anyway, Manwhathe you are the one without a grip, or maybe you have been drinking stuff you should not have.

[truth67]

05:29 PM on 06/09/2010

cess pool swimming?

[romeo blankfein]

05:17 PM on 06/09/2010

Hundreds of people safely dive in polluted waters by using an impermeable dry suit with a full coverage mask. Post-dive, the diver is washed down by his support crew until all the contaminants are removed. Perhaps that is what he meant by Hazmat suit. Regardless, any professional diver should own a good quality dry suit even when operating in warmer waters such as the Gulf.

[ScapeGoat]

05:14 PM on 06/09/2010

MUST READ:

Feds knew of Gulf spill risks in 2000, document shows

Read more: http://www.mcclatchydc.com/2010/06/08/95535/feds-knew-of-gulf-spill-risks.html#ixzz0qNEGR4XV

A decade ago, U.S. government regulators warned that a major deepwater oil spill could start with a fire on a drilling rig, prove hard to stop and cause extensive damage to fish eggs and wetlands because there were few good ways to capture oil underwater.

The disaster scenario — contained in a May 2000 offshore drilling plan for the Shell oil company that McClatchy has obtained — is now a grim reality in the Gulf of Mexico. Less predictably, perhaps, the author of the document was the Interior Department's Minerals Management Service, the regulatory agency that's come under withering criticism in the wake of the BP spill for being too cozy with industries it was supposed to be regulating.

Read more: http://www.mcclatchydc.com/2010/06/08/95535/feds-knew-of-gulf-spill-risks.html#ixzz0qNEUfboC

[piobaireachd]

05:41 PM on 06/09/2010

@scapegoat

thanks for the info and link

f/f

[Eyeful]

02:42 AM on 06/10/2010

2000? Try 1979.
http://www.wimp.com/oilspills/