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In Pictures: Gulf spill agony

Doctors continue to treat people suffering from acute chemical exposure in aftermath of oil spill and toxic response.

Dr Riki Ott, a toxicologist, marine biologist and Exxon Valdez oil spill disaster survivor, told Al Jazeera that 2-butoxyethanol, a chemical resulting from BP(***)s disaster, is "a human health hazard substance; it is a fetal toxin and it breaks down blood cells, causing blood and kidney disorders".

By Erika Blumenfeld

Published On 26 Feb 2013

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Lorrie Williams, a resident of Ocean Springs, Mississippi, has chemicals from BP(***)s oil in her blood stream. She has lost 70 pounds in the past nine months, and fears she may not be alive for another year.
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Donny Matsler (centre), from Dauphin Island, Alabama, has extremely high levels of BP(***)s chemicals in his blood, according to Dr William Rea at his clinic in Dallas, Texas, where Matsler was undergoing detoxification treatment.
Daisy Seal, who lives near the coast of Mississippi, told Al Jazeera she "started having respiratory problems, a horrible skin rash, headaches, nosebleeds, low energy, and trouble sleeping. And I now feel like I(***)m dying from the inside out."
At a US Coast Guard contingency meeting in Mississippi last September, Al Jazeera was told that dispersants would continue to be used in the event of another oil spill.
Jonathan Henderson, with the Gulf Restoration Network, has made more than 100 trips into the field to inspect the damage caused by BP(***)s disaster, and continues to see evidence of oil along Gulf Coast beaches and marshlands.
Dr William Rea established the Environmental Health Center in Dallas, Texas, to treat people who suffer from acute chemical exposure. Rea has treated many people from the Gulf Coast who have been made sick since BP(***)s toxic chemicals were released.
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In the months following BP(***)s disaster, it was common to see oil soaked boom hanging in place of shrimp nets, as thousands of fishermen enrolled in the Vessels of Opportunity (VOO) program that hired fishermen and their boats, allegedly to help clean up the oil.
John Gooding, a resident of Pass Christian, Mississippi, began having health problems shortly after the oil disaster started. He has become more ill with each passing month, and has moved inland in an effort to escape what he believes is ongoing exposure to BP(***)s chemicals.
According to the Centre for Biological Diversity, at least 6,000 sea turtles, 26,000 dolphins and whales, 82,000 birds, and countless fish have been killed or harmed by BP(***)s disaster.