Return to Transcripts main page

American Morning

BP Continues to Attempt Top Kill; President Claims Federal Government in Charge of Operations to Stop Gulf Leak; Interview With BP CEO Tony Hayward; Gov. Bobby Jindal Weighs in on Stopping the Oil Leak; Tracking the Oil Spill; Damage Control

Aired May 28, 2010 - 07:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


JOHN ROBERTS, CNN ANCHOR: Critical condition, an oil disaster now twice the size of the "Exxon Valdez" spill polluting the Gulf of Mexico, poisoning an industry. A country awaits where this morning as a president deserts (ph) control. A new day dawns, and this is now the biggest oil spill in American history.

Good morning and thanks for joining us on this special edition of AMERICAN MORNING. It's Friday, the 28th of May in New York. I'm John Roberts. Good morning, Kiran.

KIRAN CHETRY, CNN ANCHOR: Hi, John. I'm reporting here from Grand Isle, Louisiana. We're now entering day 39 of this disaster. We're coming to you from the shores of one of the outer island Louisiana.

This place is called Grand Isle, and it's a place supposed to be teaming with tourists over the Memorial holiday weekend. Now the beaches are nearly deserted. A handful of people are here, scientists, cleanup workers, and state and local leaders and National Guard.

I had a chance to spend time with one of local leaders, Louisiana governor Bobby Jindal. One of the most important things to him, he says, in the state of Louisiana is to build these berms, huge sand barriers, five to six feet tall to prevent the oil from seeping into the delicate marshlands.

There was partial approval given by the federal government, but they want the entire plan approved to move forward quickly as possible.

We're also watching what's happening 5,000 feet on the floor of the Gulf of Mexico where we continue to monitor the live feed that BP is providing us of the spewing oil well. For the latest on that, let's head to David Mattingly in New Orleans this morning with more on the top kill procedure, that attempt to plug the leak once and for all.

Good morning, David.

DAVID MATTINGLY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Kiran. Overnight reporting from BP indicates that the top kill procedure is still ongoing. And yesterday BP was giving us the most upbeat comments they have been able to since this entire disaster began, saying everything was going according to plan.

What everyone didn't know was part of the plan was there was going to be stops and starts with the pumping of that industrial mud that they are pumping down into the blowout preventer. The plan is to essentially drown the oil well in the heavy liquid.

Yesterday for a 16-hour period, the pumping of that mud was stopped so they could check their readings and data and make sure everything was going well. BP said that this is not a sign things are not going well, but this was part of our plan.

Today they are going to continue that, and BP now saying that so far, what they were saying overnight with everything still going according to plan. But at this point, they are not willing to say that this operation will be a success.

CHETRY: At the end of today if BP decides top-kill didn't work or maybe it takes them until the weekend to discover that, what is the backup plan? What is next?

MATTINGLY: The backup plan is already in place and ready to go. It could be implemented within a couple days if top kill does not work. What they are going to do there, that pipe we've been watching, all of that cloudy material leaks out of the top, what we're watching there, they are going to be slicing that pipe off and putting a valve and new containment facility on there to siphon the oil up to the surface.

So if this top kill does not work, they are going to step away from the idea of stopping the oil and look for a way to contain it.

CHETRY: David Mattingly for us this morning. We'll talk to the CEO of BP coming up as well. Thanks so much, David.

And if you can't see the enemy, how can you kill it? That's a question a lot of scientists have right now about what's going on and how much oil is below the surface where they can't necessarily get a gauge of how big of an impact it's having.

We'll take a look at what they have recovered, the university of south Florida scientists, marine biologists discovering what they call an enormous plume of oil 22 miles long, six miles wide, beginning near the ruptured well head and heading northeast all the way towards Mobile Bay, Alabama.

What makes it so disturbing is it starts at the surface and continues 3300 feet down towards the floor of the Gulf. The scientists who found it are also saying they fear the chemical dispersant being used by BP is weighing down the oil and perhaps keeping it out of sight.

All this morning we're committed to showing you exactly what CNN sees as we see it. In the lower right hand corner of your screen we'll show you the live feed of the oil leak all morning long.

Now let's send it back to New York and John. ROBERTS: Kiran, thanks so much.

With oil already standing 100 miles of coastline, the federal government has finally approved Louisiana's plan to build some new barrier islands, berms really, to keep oil from reaching back into precious wetlands.

Admiral Thad Allen granted the emergency permit to begin one of six segments 40 miles long just west of the Mississippi River in Plaquemines Parrish. BP and the federal government will be picking up the state, but just for the first one. Allen said the state will have to pay the bill the other five that have been approved by the Army Corps of Engineers.

It is now officially even by the most conservative estimate the biggest oil spill in U.S. history. New estimates released by the U.S. geological survey showing it is much worse than BP ever let on.

The worst case scenario, 39 million gallons, nearly four times the size of the Exxon Valdez.

So they spun this spill with video yesterday and didn't tell anyone that the last, best attempt to stop the leak was on hold for 16 hours. Last night on "JOHN KING USA" BP's chief operating officer finally admitted the company needs to work on its communication skills.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DOUG SUTTLES, CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER, BP: We somehow need to continually feed data out there to the public so they can know what's occurring. They're obviously able to watch the plume at the end of the riser. But John, we've actually said it's very difficult to tell exactly what's occurring from that.

So John, I probably should apologize to folks we haven't been giving more data on that. It's nothing more than we're so focused on the operation itself.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROBERTS: After weeks of the White House saying that BP is in charge, President Obama came out and told reporters that the buck stops with him. He'll leave for the Gulf Coast in about two hours time in an attempt to cap the political fallout from this disaster.

Ed Henry will be watching that trip and he's already in New Orleans for us. What's the president's goal today, Ed?

ED HENRY, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, good morning, John. He's under intense political pressure now from even his fellow Democrats to show he's on top of the situation. That's the message he wants to send on the ground here, that's the message he sent yesterday at the White House.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) HENRY: The president's message again and again -- "I'm in charge."

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: In case you're wondering who's responsible, I take responsibility. It is my job to make sure that everything is done to shut this down. It doesn't mean we're not going to make mistakes, but there shouldn't be any confusion. The federal government is fully engaged, and I'm fully engaged.

HENRY: But there seemed to be a disconnect after days of the president's own aides insisting BP was in control.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I understand you're saying you're legally not allowed to take sort of command and control of the situation --

ROBERT GIBBS, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: Again, Jennifer, they are responsible for it and we are overseeing the recovery response.

HENRY: Mr. Obama was now saying the government has been running the show all along.

OBAMA: The American people should know from the moment this disaster began, the federal government has been in charge of the response effort.

As far as I'm concerned, BP is responsible for this horrific disaster and we'll continue to take full advantage of the unique technology and expertise they have to help stop this leak. But make no mistake, BP is operating at our direction.

HENRY: That was news to lawmakers from here in Louisiana. Still angry, Governor Bobby Jindal's request to help build barriers for the wetlands fell through the cracks.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Today the president held a press conference where he said that he's been in charge from day one. I've just got to disagree. If this has been his top priority and he's been in charge from day one, than why is it that it took more than 16 days to get an answer from our governor and our local officials who submitted a plan to protect the marsh from the oil?

HENRY: Also confusion about the ouster of Liz Birnbaum, head of the agency in charge of offshore drilling permits, a chance to show the White House of cleaning house. But oddly, the president seemed out of the loop.

OBAMA: If there was a resignation, then she would have submitted a letter to Mr. Salazar this morning at a time when I had a whole bunch of other stuff going on.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Can you rule out she was fired?

OBAMA: Jackie, I don't know. I'm telling you I found out about it this morning. So I don't yet know the circumstances.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HENRY: Now, once the president hits the ground this afternoon, he'll be touring the beach in Grand Isle trying to get an up close look at the situation. And then he'll make a statement at the coast guard headquarters again trying to project this image that the federal government is all over it, John.

ROBERTS: Ed Henry live for us this morning. Ed, we'll look forward to your coverage of the president's trip there today.

Let's not forget in unfolding slow-motion catastrophe started with an instant tragedy -- 11 lives lost 39 days ago. Yesterday on Capitol Hill, there was heartbreaking but very telling testimony from family members. Even Louisiana Democrat Charlie Melancon broke down saying it was too much after Katrina, Rita, Gustav, and Ike, five years of misery, and now this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. CHARLIE MALANCON, (D) LOUISIANA: Our culture is threatened, our coastal economy is threatened and everything that I know and love is at risk. Even though this marsh lies -- -- along coastal Louisiana, these are America's wetlands. Excuse me. I just wish to submit for the record. Thank you.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROBERTS: Families told Congress they are worried about the commitment to make BP accountable.

Coming up after the break, we'll talk to the company's CEO Tony Hayward, why the apparent disconnect about what we were being told and what's happening with the top kill operation, what was behind that? Let's send it back to Grand Isle and Kiran.

CHETRY: It was hard to see the congressman choking up like that, and that sentiment and feeling is echoed by so many in the region. And we had a chance to tour the hardest-hit areas and some of the places where they are making progress trying to protect the coastline.

I had a chance to tour some of these area with Governor Bobby Jindal of Louisiana, and we'll show you what we found when we got there coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ROBERTS: It's 14 minutes after the hour. The top kill operation on the bottom of the ocean floor in the Gulf of Mexico continues apace this morning. Let's get an update now on the operations that BP is undertaking to try to snuff out the flow of oil. Tony Hayward is the CEO of BP and he joins us from Houston this morning.

Mr. Hayward, thanks for your time. What's the latest on the top kill operation?

TONY HAYWARD, CEO, BP: Good morning, John. It's proceeding broadly according to plan. The first phase was to pump heavy drilling mud into the well to overcome the pressure. We managed to line out the entire subsea system in doing that, the first time it's been done a mile beneath the sea.

That was resulted in some success. And then yesterday afternoon, we moved to pump loss control material into the blowout preventer to try and create some bridging within the blowout preventer --

JOHN ROBERTS, CNN ANCHOR: That's what they call --

HAYWARD: -- they can't switch --

ROBERTS: That's what they call the junk shot?

HAYWARD: That is the local terminology is the junk shot. That was concluded in the early hours of this morning. And later today, we will go back to pumping drilling mud in an attempt to overcome the flow of the oil and gas.

ROBERTS: All right. So, we're still seeing -- we've got that live picture at the top of the riser pipe above the blowout preventer, Mr. Hayward, this morning. We're still seeing a lot of material coming out of the top. Is that any kind of an indication that the junk shot may not have actually clogged up the blowout preventer?

HAYWARD: Based on the pressure measurements we have across the blowout preventer, we have some indications of partial bridging, which is good news. The material you're seeing coming out of the top of the riser this morning is almost all mud. Clearly the mud is nontoxic, it's water-based. It does no environmental harm at all. And clearly once we're pumping mud, there is no oil and gas coming into the sea.

ROBERTS: Right.

HAYWARD: So it would go back -- as I said, we go back to pumping mud later today. I think it's probably 48 hours before we'll have a conclusive view this. I know that's frustrating for everyone. I am probably more frustrated than many. I want to get this thing done. I know as soon as we possibly can. We are doing everything we can to achieve that.

ROBERTS: So, as we watch this operation, a number of questions are being raised about the safety record of BP, what was going on in drilling this bore hole before it blew up. I know that when you came on as CEO of BP, you pledged to make safety a number one issue. But there are a lot of lingering concerns about that. And yesterday, a worker on the Deepwater Horizon, Stephen Stone, testified at a hearing yesterday. And he charged that BP is still cutting corners to save money and that's jeopardizing safety. I'd like to play for you if I could a little bit of what he said yesterday and get you to respond.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

STEPHEN STONE, EMPLOYEE SURVIVOR AT DEEPWATER HORIZON EXPLOSION: When these companies put their savings over our safety, they gamble with our lives. They gamble with my life. They gambled with the lives of 11 of my crew members who will never see their families or loved ones again.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROBERTS: Mr. Hayward, what do you say to that?

HAYWARD: I don't believe there's any evidence that there's any savings putting people's lives at risk. We always put safety first. Safe and reliable operations are what comes first.

I do think, John, that we need to await for the full findings of the investigation before we draw conclusions. What's very clear is this was a very complicated, complex accident involving many, many things that came together. Failures of equipment, failures of human process, perhaps failures of human judgment. And it's too early to draw conclusions. There are a number of investigations ongoing. They will draw the right conclusions.

ROBERTS: All right. So safety again, you say your number one concern. But according to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, their statistics show that BP has had hundreds of safety violations in the past three years at its refineries. OSHA is proposing $87 million in fines against BP and that's a record. And the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Labor for OSHA Jordan Barab says that BP has a, quote, "systemic safety problem."

HAYWARD: All I can is since I've been in this job for three years, I have focused mostly (ph) on safe and reliable operations. We've made significant organizational charges, changes to our processes, changes to people, and changes to our culture. And of course, you can never do enough.

ROBERTS: So you're saying that despite your best efforts, there may indeed still be systemic safety problems throughout the industry, throughout your company?

HAYWARD: I don't believe there are systemic safety problems in BP today. And I think when we understand the cause of this accident, we will see that this is not to do with systemic safety issues.

ROBERTS: All right. Eleven days ago, Mr. Hayward, you said that you thought that the environmental impact of this would be very, very modest. Your words. What was the basis for that statement?

HAYWARD: The basis for the statement was that at the time that I made the statement we clearly had not had any oil on the shore and we were doing everything we could to contain the oil offshore and defend the shoreline. A cup of oil on the shore is failure. And in that regard, we have failed to defend the shoreline to the degree and extent that we believe we could.

ROBERTS: And now --

HAYWARD: We are going to continue to do that very vigorously working hand in hand with the Coast Guard. We are poring and more resources into Louisiana. But we have enormous resources deployed in the Gulf Coast region. The reality is that we need almost all of it in Louisiana.

ROBERTS: And now that it's been found by government scientists that the amount of oil coming out of that blowout preventer is perhaps five times what it was initially thought, it maybe 19,000 barrels a day and not 5,000 barrels a day. If I were to ask you what you thought the environmental impact of the spill is going to be, what would you say? What would your assessment be now?

HAYWARD: This is clearly an environmental catastrophe. There's no two ways about it. And all I would say is that (INAUDIBLE) estimate, the initial rate was a government estimate. These rates are a government estimate.

ROBERTS: But you're upping your assessment now to environmental catastrophe?

HAYWARD: It's clear. I mean, it is clear that we are dealing with a very significant environmental crisis and catastrophe.

ROBERTS: You have promised, Mr. Hayward to clean up every drop of oil that's out there. But we explored some marshlands with Governor Jindal in Pasalutra (ph) the other day where the oil is just sitting there. Nobody has been in to clean it up. Yesterday, our Rob Marciano was out in the gulf. They went miles and miles out in the oil spill and they didn't see anyone cleaning up in that area. So you say that you're going to clean up every drop of oil, but where are the people doing it?

HAYWARD: Well, we have 20,000 people in the area working on oil cleanup. We've got 50 planes now flying a continuous basis to identify where oil is coming ashore so we can get rapid response teams to those locations and deal with it as quickly as we can.

ROBERTS: Right. The president made it clear yesterday that he doesn't absolutely trust you when it comes to the extent of the damage that the spill is causing. I'd like to play a little of what he said yesterday and get you to respond to it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Their interest may be to minimize the damage and to the extent that they have better information than anybody else, to not be fully forthcoming. So, my attitude is we have to verify whatever it is they say about the damage.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROBERTS: So you've got your company responsible now for the biggest oil spill in American history and the president saying, I don't fully trust you to tell the truth when it comes to the potential damage. You appear to have at least for the government a fairly significant credibility gap here? HAYWARD: We've tried to be open and transparent in our communication of this from the very beginning. We've had all government agencies working with us in our organization from the very beginning. They had access to everything from the very beginning. If we've fallen short, then I apologize, but we have tried to be open and transparent about everything from the very beginning. And I'm very happy to have the government verify the material and data that is being provided.

I spent most of last night with Secretary Chu overseeing the "top kill" operation. I talk every day with Admiral Thad Allen about how the spill response is going on. There is from my perspective complete and open collaboration between BP and the federal agencies.

ROBERTS: It would appear, at least, according to the president, you haven't yet convinced him.

Mr. Hayward, thanks for your time this morning. I know you're busy. Just before we go, I know that Anderson Cooper has been anxious to talk to you on his program. And I've been asked to extend an invitation to come on with him tonight at 10:00 if you could as we're heading into the Memorial Day weekend just to give people an update before the holiday begins.

HAYWARD: I'm going to be on a vessel in Louisiana this evening. I'll see what I can do.

ROBERTS: All right. Very good. Thanks so much for your time again.

HAYWARD: Thank you.

ROBERTS: And let's send it back down to Grand Isle, and here's Kiran.

CHETRY: Thanks, John. And officials here in Louisiana are doing what they can, of course, as fast as they can to try to stop the oil from spreading into more of the state's critical wetlands. Yesterday, I had a chance to tour some of the hardest hit areas with Governor Bobby Jindal to just see the progress.

We're looking at a picture right now of an area where there was a lot of oil collected. You can see the sandbags. You can see the booms. They're trying to do everything they can. And he doesn't seem necessarily as interested in talking about whose fault it is, he wants to stop the oil from gushing, obviously. And he also wants to get approval from the federal government to take care of his state's coast.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Just so you guys all know, we've got Kiran with us from CNN on board.

GOV. BOBBY JINDAL (R), LOUISIANA: Welcome.

CHETRY: Thanks so much. Thanks for having us.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Up ahead is one of the land bridges that the National Guard has built. (INAUDIBLE) this was an open water before they went to work. That definitely wasn't there. That oil would have gotten right past that land bridge. You see where they're actually driving across that land bridge, that was open water before this incident. And again, the National Guard in four days was able to build that land bridge, about 785 feet. We're working on 40 gaps like that all around the coast of Louisiana.

CHETRY: And, Governor, you said that they basically were able to do that in four days. Who had to make the call and OK that?

JINDAL: We did. We basically deployed our National Guard. I want to help them. This is their way of life. This is their state. They've been here for years, maybe for decades. They want their children and grandchildren to (INAUDIBLE).

This is a great example of -- look, I hate to see this oil on a sandy beach. I'd much rather see that oil right here than back there on those wetlands. If this oil here we can come, you can come and shovel. They can come clean that up. They can replace this sand. You hate to see it. You don't want to see it on any inch of Louisiana's coast. They would be much more dangerous once it gets behind us.

That's the actual dredge out there, but 20,000 feet offshore. It's getting the sand there. And you can it's piped in back here. And that's how they're building these sand booms, these sand berms here.

CHETRY: So we've been touring east Grand Terre Island here with Governor Jindal and he's been explaining to us exactly what's happening. They were already dredging sand for a coastal restoration project. He redirected it to build these berms up to five to six feet high to be able to be the first line of defense when the oil comes to shore. They tell you it's not ideal, of course, for any oil to come ashore but at least they can capture it here and scoop it up, get it off the sand before it makes its way here. Without these berms, it would slowly seep into these very fragile wetlands and once that happens, these grasses would be destroyed.

JINDAL: These wetlands are important to the entire country. This is 30 percent of all the fisheries for the entire country. You know, you're talking about the gulf it's one of the most important ecosystems, one of the most important estuaries is caught -- 30 percent of those fish caught off our coast. And what's even more important about these wetlands is the gulf's nurseries. Literally, this is where the young come and it's not just the fish and the shrimp and the crabs and the oysters you want to catch this year, it's for multiple years.

CHETRY: You know, of course, everything always turns into a political hot potato and now you even have Democrats, huge supporters of the president like James Carville saying that this has been botched. In fact, in some cases, insinuating that this would be, quote, "Obama's Katrina." Is that fair?

JINDAL: Well, a couple of things. Look, Katrina for Louisiana was a unique event in our state's history. Over 1,000 people died from Katrina. Over $100 billion of property damage due to Katrina. It's changed our state. We're rebuilding and recovering from that awful storm.

This oil spill is another huge challenge for our state. It threatens literally our way of life. It presents its own set of challenges. I know folks in D.C. are trying to point fingers and figure out the politics. I really don't care. What I care about is stopping this oil off our coast. What is clear to me is there hasn't been a sense of urgency. There hasn't been the resources.

CHETRY: Explain a little bit about what you're trying to get the federal government to understand and to approve?

JINDAL: The most important thing to me is get us the permit, get us the dredges. The most important thing to me is get us the local decision-making authority so we don't have to wait. Get us the additional boom and skimmers. Get us, in other words, the tools to help us help ourselves fight this oil and keep it off our coast. We're doing everything we can to protect our coast. All we want from federal government is permission to go out and do even more and for them to hold BP accountable.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHETRY: So he talked about the permission to do more. Thad Allen of the Coast Guard approving the building of one particular berm that they're going to consider experimental. If it works, then they may go ahead approving others. Now, that has some of the local parish presidents like Plaquemines Parish president very upset.

He says we can't wait. We have to just build all of these berms and so perhaps Governor Jindal will find himself in the middle of that as well as the debate goes on as to who pays for this when you have some parish presidents threatening to take matters in their own hands and do it anyway. And of course, the issue of cost is a big one as well because this region has been decimated. And so a big question about where they're going to get the money and the resources to be able to do that on their own as well.

And we'll, of course, continue to follow that aspect of the story. And meanwhile, coming up, Gulf Coast fishermen who can't make a living because of the oil spill. BP has promised to cover their losses but the fishermen are still waiting for the oil giant to pay up.

You're watching a special edition of AMERICAN MORNING live from the Gulf Coast. We're back after the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ROBERTS: Crossing the half hour now. Good morning, again, from New York. I'm John Roberts. Good morning, Kiran. CHETRY: Good morning, John, I'm here reporting from Grand Isle, Louisiana. Again, the work goes on a mile below the surface of the gulf where BP's massive top kill effort drowned the oil well in a sea of mud continues. But it could be well into the weekend before BP knows for sure if it's working.

Now, coming up in this half hour, we're going to be speaking with Doug Inkley from the National Wildlife Foundation about the devastating impact of the spreading oil spill, the effect it's having on the coastal wildlife in this area. That's the brown pelican here.

This area of Grand Isle, known for the brown pelican. This is the nesting time of the year and of course a lot of the areas where they nest already destroyed by the marsh - oil spill in those marshlands. And so this is extremely troubling.

And John, the other question, of course was that huge plume of oil that scientists out of Florida said they spotted stretching 22 miles from the leaking well head all the way possibly towards Mobile Bay, Alabama. That's another big question as well. How much damage is going on underneath the surface.

ROBERTS: And how much of that will wash up on shore as that water get shallower? A lot of question still remain this morning, Kiran.

Your top stories now.

Both the House and the Senate Armed Services committee approved measures to repeal "don't ask, don't tell," the military policy barring open gay and lesbian soldiers from serving. Yesterday's House vote was on an amendment to a Pentagon spending bill. A final House vote on the entire bill is expected later on today.

The Feds issuing an urgent call for more engine inspections on the airplanes that we fly on every day. The reason? Four General Electric jet engines failing on overseas flights in the past two years. Luckily none of those failures resulted in a crash.

The leaders of China and South Korea meeting today in Seoul for the growing crisis in the Korean Peninsula. China remains North Korea's strongest regional ally. Beijing's foreign ministry calling the situation, "highly complicated."

Meanwhile, Japan is slapping Pyongyang with new sanctions fledging full cooperation with Washington and Seoul.

A horrific train crash in eastern India in the middle of the night. At least 70 people were killed, 200 others injury. The passenger train was headed to Mumbai when officials say it collided with a freight train. Investigators suspect that Maoist rebels caused the crash possibly by using explosives to damage the track.

Plus forecasters are calling for a brutal hurricane season. Officials say there is no way to predict how the storms could redistribute the oil spill if one were to make it to the Gulf of Mexico.

And with that much oil on the gulf surface, the slick could even change the way that hurricanes form. Plus new research from the American geophysical union finds that powerful hurricanes could significantly move the sea bed by creating underwater mudslides causing oil pipe lines in the gulf to break.

Well, to hear BP tell it, they have already paid tens of millions of dollars to fishermen and others who make a living from the gulf. But many of the fishermen tell a different story. They say BP has not done nearly enough to make up for what they've lost. Our Ed Lavandera is following that part of the massive story today. He's live for us in New Orleans this morning. Hi, Ed.

ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi John. Well, a few weeks ago the initial claim checks started going out from BP. But everywhere you go across this gulf coast region, fishermen and business owners directly affected by this oil spill say it's going to take a lot more than the millions they've doled out to make things right.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LAVANDERA (voice-over): Chris Battle and his crew of crabbers want more than just talk from BP. They want money.

(on camera): How much money do you think you have lost?

CHRIS BATTLE, CRAB FISHERMAN: Close to 20,000, $30,000. you know, I mean, that's a good bit.

LAVANDERA (voice-over): Crab fishing waters closed for more than three weeks because of the oil spill, leaving these guys out of work. When Battle filed his claim with BP, all he got was a $5,000 check.

At this time of year, I'm catching $2,500 to $3,000 worth of crabs a day. And they wrote me a check for 5,000. It's just not enough. It's not what I lost. I mean, if you go by what I lost, I lost way more than that.

LAVANDERA: Deck hand Derrick Bennett says he only got a $725 check for the three weeks he was out of work and he says he can't find out from the claims rep when more money is coming.

DERRICK BENNETT, CRAB FISHERMAN: He tells me to call him back every week. I call him every week and the same (bleep), tells me over and over again.

LAVANDERA (on camera): So far BP has paid $35 million on about 27,000 settlements. The company promises that this is just the beginning, that it's only a partial settlement. But around here, people who make a living off the gulf waters say it's going to take a lot more than that to make things right.

(voice-over): Anger is spreading across the Gulf Coast and many business owners like Buggy Vegas, don't trust BP to pay up.

(on camera): So business has completely disappeared?

BUGGY VEGAS: It is. It is. I sold four cups of coffee this morning.

LAVANDERA (voice-over): Vegas owns the Bridgeside Marina in Grand Isle. He filed a claim more than two weeks ago and he is still waiting for a check.

(on camera): What did they tell you that you can get?

VEGAS: They put us in a large claim and they said we'll get $5,000.

LAVANDERA: That's it?

VEGAS: That's what the lawyers claim.

LAVANDERA: One check for 5,000?

VEGAS: That's what they tell us. That don't even pay the light bill.

LAVANDERA (voice-over): At town hall sessions BP claim representatives are getting an earful from angry folks out of work.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: When that oil is gone, BP is going to be gone too.

LAVANDERA: But the company vows to bring more money and streamline the process.

ALAN CARPENTER, BP CONTRACTOR: We're doing as much as we can as quick as we can as far as that goes. That is not the end.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We are taking the next step within - actually we've begun taking the larger claims, which affect businesses like yours. It wasn't there in the first 30 days, you're right. It's now time for the second phase.

LAVANDERA: Those are just words for Chris Bennett and his crab trapping crew. They won't count on any more money from BP until they see it.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LAVANDERA: And John, what's interesting is actually they have hired a contracting firm to handle the claims process for the company. And they say if anyone is not happy with the money they eventually received from BP, there will be an arbitration process, you can actually even end up in court if you fail to go that way. And of course, with that comes a lot of legal costs. John.

ROBERTS: It certainly does. Ed Lavandera for us this morning from New Orleans. Ed, thanks so much. Coming up the oil and the damage done and the damage yet to be realized. Doug Inkley has had a bird's eye view of what the gulf oil slick has done to birds and other wildlife. And what the future holds as well. We'll talk with him just ahead. It's 38 minutes after the hour.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(MUSIC PLAYING)

CHETRY: 40 minutes past the hour. We're live back here on Grand Isle, Louisiana. It's the Friday before Memorial Day weekend and the beaches that would be filled with people right now are closed. The fishing areas stopped. No boats in the water.

But it may actually be years before we know the full extent of the damage from the gulf oil spill. There's no doubt that the impact on the fish, the wildlife and the environment has been devastating. But can the coast recover?

Doug Inkley is a senior scientist with the National Wildlife Federation. He's been monitoring the clean up and the spill and he joins me now this morning. Welcome, thanks for being here. You've had a chance to go on the water and see it first hand. You also had the chance to go up in a plane to survey the damage. What are you seeing that's most troubling?

DOUG INKLEY, NATIONAL WILDLIFE FEDERATION, SENIOR SCIENTIST: When I came down here what I expected to see was a beehive of activity. And what I'm seeing is very little actively. It almost seems like a ghost town. In three days on the water, two days on the water. One day in the area, I've seen a total of two cleanup crews.

CHETRY: And how far out were you?

INKLEY: I went as far as 10 miles out. But when I was 10 miles out, I encountered heavy, heavy oil, about a half inch thick on top of the ocean. And we were still some 50 miles from the site of the spill.

CHETRY: And why - has there been any answers about why there boats out there skimming. We've heard that there has been 16 different nations that have offered up equipment and help in some way to bring their boats and to bring skimmers out here. Why does it seem like a ghost town in the water?

INKLEY: Well, I've seen one skimmer since I've been here. And I really wish BP would give us the answer as to why it's not being cleaned up like they said they would. They said it would be everywhere in addressing this and they seemed like they are not here.

CHETRY: That's very disturbing, and you're not the only one who has said that. When you come closer to shore, you do see boom, oil- absorbing boom and you see the Louisiana National Guard hard at work trying to build the berms, trying to seal off waters in a lot of the booms. I saw the U.S. Navy, so obviously at the coastlines there are efforts to protect the marshes and the coast. However, the oil has already gotten there.

INKLEY: Yes. I've seen several islands that have been covered with the oil. And the boom was surrounding them. And I saw more oil inside the booms than I was seeing outside of the booms. What this is telling me is that the booms are very, very ineffective at stopping the oil from getting into the island. So that was a disturbing sight to know that we're seeing more oil inside than outside.

CHETRY: What about the impact on the wildlife? What have we seen so far?

INKLEY: Well, I visited one island that was a nesting colony for brown pelicans that was taken off the endangered species list just last year. And surrounding this island was a bathtub ring of oil. Further out where I spoke about earlier, about where the oil was that thick, I found a shark swimming in the water. I was very disoriented.

And obviously was in a high amount of stress and I also came upon an eel, that was a foot and a half long and it was dead. It was covered in oil. I don't see any living creature could survive in oil that thick.

CHETRY: OK. So then the other question is the dispersant situation, you're not happy with the fact that still now there has not been a disclosure about exactly what chemicals are being used so that you guys can determine as the scientists whether or not it's going to have an impact on the future areas and the future wildlife that has not yet even come into an adult stage.

INKLEY: Yes. In order to try to understand and address the impacts, it's important to know exactly what's in the oil and exactly what's in the dispersants. It's kind of like a medical study, where you have to know the dosage and what you're giving the patient in order to understand what the effect is.

We haven't heard from BP the exact amount of the spill and we haven't heard from BP exactly what's in the oil. We don't know exactly how much dispersant is being employed although it's in the hundreds of thousands of gallons and they refuse to tell us what's in the dispersant. We need to know that information in order to do proper clean up and proper assessment.

CHETRY: The other question is about the plume of oil that apparently some Florida scientists discovered 22 miles stretching from the wellhead leak all the way into possibly Mobile Bay, Alabama, that area. What does that tell you when you're talking about a plume that large and I guess, what do they say 3,300 feet down?

INKLEY: I believe it was close to the surface to 3,300 feet down. So it's a very huge plume. Actually I'm not surprised given that the oil spill is some mile deep. What we're seeing here in the wetlands and on the beaches where we're seeing the oil is only the proverbial tip of the iceberg.

The real concern here is that the use of the dispersants is breaking up the oil slicks on the surface, but it's transferring the impact of the oil into the entire marine eco system. So it's not at all surprising that we should see a big oil plume like that.

CHETRY: And what is your best estimate or thoughts about the future? Can - can this area recover? Can this area survive it ecologically?

INKLEY: Well, we already know that the spill is some two to four times the size of the Exxon-Valdez. That was back in 1989, some 21 years ago. We still know that the herring population in Prince William Sound has not recovered.

So it's very clear to me as a biologist that this spill, this BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico is going to be with us, if not for years, probably decades.

CHETRY: Doug Inkley, thanks for your insight this morning. Appreciate it.

INKLEY: Thank you.

CHETRY: Right now we're going to check in with Reynolds Wolf when he - when we come back from the break. He has a look at the morning travel forecast for us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ROBERTS: Well, it is unofficially the first holiday weekend of summer and so you're probably wondering what the weather is going to be like across the country, and if you're flying or driving somewhere, how the weather is going to be for traveling.

Our Reynolds Wolf has got the answer to all of those questions. He's in the Weather Center in Atlanta this morning. Reynolds, there's - looks like a little bit of rain over Atlanta today.

REYNOLDS WOLF, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Absolutely. Absolutely. Anyone making a drive through Atlanta, maybe taking the Blue Ridge Parkway up into the Carolinas, you're going to run into a few thunderstorms, especially by the afternoon, Northern Plains, same story, right along at frontal (ph) boundary. But in terms of it feeling like summer, those temperatures are coming - actually going to be smashing down in parts of the country like a sack of hammers.

I mean, take a look at some of the high temperatures we're getting today. When you factor in the high humidity and you bring out the mercury, it's going to be just roasting today, especially along the Gulf Coast. And Houston back to Dallas, even Austin. Not on the map, but trust me, Austin, it's going to be in the 90s also, 92 in New Orleans. But when you bring in the humidity, it's going to feel much warmer than that.

Atlanta, 86 degrees, Raleigh 83, but you may have a shower or a storm that pops up later in the afternoon. That's going to cool things down pretty quickly. You're not going to need rain cool there in the Pacific Northwest, though, fairly cool, and Billings, also in Seattle, San Francisco at 55 degrees. A bit warmer in Los Angeles, with 70 degrees out by the Staples Arena for your high today, 84 in Kansas City and 77 in Chicago.

Now, in terms of your forecast, in terms of travelers, you're going to have a few delays out there, no question about it, in spots like Atlanta, with the thunderstorms, Cincinnati and Chicago could have some backups also. Miami and Fort Lauderdale, the sea breeze thunderstorms could keep you on the tarmac for about 15 to 30 minutes, but those things don't last that long, neither should your delays.

Now, what about the holiday itself? What can you expect out there? Well, it looks like it's going to remain fairly warm on the Gulf Coast, possibly a few splash and showers (ph), temperatures mainly in the 80s right on the coast itself. Obviously in New Orleans, a bit warmer, 70s along parts of the outer banks, 60s in the nation's capital, 50s mainly up to the north, right along the coast. Overall pretty nice on much of the coast for your Memorial Day.

John, that's the latest. Let's send it back to you in New York.

ROBERTS: All right. Reynolds, thanks so much. I just wish that those folks along the Gulf Coast are going to have a better Memorial Day than they are.

WOLF: Absolutely.

ROBERTS: Nine minutes now to the top of the hour. We'll be right back. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ROBERTS: Fifty-four minutes after the hour. An "A.M. House Call" now, stories about your health.

The Food and Drug Administration sending a warning letter to one of the world's largest makers of generic drugs, Michigan-based Perrigo. The agency says Perrigo failed to take appropriate action after it was cited last year for several violations, including the release of ibuprofen tablets that were contaminated with metal shavings.

Regular trips to the tanning salon can triple, even quadruple your risk for melanoma. That's the deadliest form of skin cancer. A study by the University of Minnesota concluded that there is no safe tanning device.

Tell my daughter about that.

And mom was right when she yelled at you to brush your teeth. British researchers studied nearly 12,000 adults in Scotland and found that those who didn't brush their teeth at least twice a day had a 70 percent greater chance of heart disease. That's because inflammation from gum disease contributes to clogged arteries and that leads to heart problems and diabetes, not to mention all the discomfort suffered by those who you're talking to because you've got halitosis.

For all the latest medical and health news, just head to cnn.com/health. Top stories coming your way after a quick break. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)