As most of you are probably aware, the oil rig Deepwater Horizon caught fire, exploded, and sank last week, culminating in a massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. Latest estimates are that the continuing leak from the Gulf floor is pumping as much as 210,000 gallons a day of sweet crude into the water, and so far efforts to stop the flow have been unsuccessful.

This morning a 100-by-45 mile slick was actually ignited in an attempt to burn the oil before it reaches fragile coastal areas along the Louisiana coast.

Here’s video from the Coast Guard of the initial fire a few days ago.

Written by: Jeff Hemmel
Jeff Hemmel writes for boats.com, Boating, PersonalWatercraft.com, and Powersports Business. The former Senior Editor at Watercraft World, Jeff is a multi-time award winner as well as a 2008 inductee into the IJSBA Hall of Fame. His first book, "The Anti-Pirate Potato Cannon...and 101 Other Things For Young Mariners To Try, Do, & Build On the Water," received a bronze medal in the 2010 Moonbeam Children's Book Awards.