Gulf of Mexico
A slow-moving flood of polluted Mississippi River water is causing serious damage to Gulf species, and a major storm threatens to make it worse.
Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards warned that there could be “a considerable amount of overtopping” of levees.
“The old maps often showed serpents at the edge, with the warning ‘here be monsters.’ However, the ‘monsters’ are here, in our own backyard.”
The oxygen-starved area, which kills marine life and habitats, is expected to be the size of Massachusetts.
WHAT'S HAPPENING
It was the most powerful hurricane to hit the continental U.S. in nearly 50 years and at least one death was reported during its passage.
Gov. Rick Scott declared a state of emergency for 35 Florida counties.
It could become the second hurricane to hit the region in less than a year.
Former Florida Lt. Gov. Jeff Kottkamp, who is now a lobbyist for the oil industry, has said that "tar balls are naturally occurring."
Alberto, the first named Atlantic storm of 2018, spun up days before the formal June 1 start of the hurricane season.
It's the first time researchers have seen Hilton in the Gulf of Mexico.