Readout of the President’s Briefing on the Preparations for Tropical Storm Bonnie and its Impacts on the BP Oil Spill Response

President Obama was briefed today by Deputy National Incident Commander Rear Admiral Pete Neffenger on the ongoing administration-wide response to the Deepwater Horizon BP oil spill, and by FEMA Administrator Craig Fugate and Deputy FEMA Administrator Rich Serino on the preparations for potential impacts of Tropical Storm Bonnie along the Gulf Coast.

Administrator Fugate joined the briefing by phone. Deputy National Incident Commander Neffenger discussed how the storm is impacting the response to the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. He briefed the President on preparations for the temporary removal from the well site of the rigs drilling the relief well and other vessels involved in the response. In addition, Rear Admiral Neffenger discussed how Admiral Thad Allen directed BP to take measures to ensure the vessels operating the ROV’s are the last to leave, and the first to return in order to maximize monitoring of the well. Monitoring of the site during the well integrity test remains one of the government’s highest priorities

Administrator Fugate and Deputy Administrator Serino discussed FEMA’s close coordination with state and local officials in potentially affected states, including Florida, Louisiana, Alabama, Mississippi and Texas. FEMA is continuing to monitor the storm’s movement through its regional offices along the Gulf Coast, and has pre-positioned commodities and staff across the Gulf Coast should assistance be requested from those states. Those supplies include water, meals, tarps, blankets, generators and other essential items.  

The President stressed that the team needs to be prepared for all scenarios and do everything needed to protect the residents and communities of the Gulf Coast including the oil response personnel and ensure that all oil response efforts will resume as soon as the storm passes.

A photograph of the President’s briefing is available HERE (www.flickr.com/photos/whitehouse/4822168600/) .