As Oil Spreads, BP Says it Underestimated Flow

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Source: CBS News/AP

Thick Crude Reaches Louisiana Marshes and Small Portion Reaches Loop Current; BP Capturing 210K Gallons a Day

(CBS/ AP) BP conceded Thursday that more oil than it estimated is gushing into the Gulf of Mexico as heavy crude washed into Louisiana's wetlands for the first time, feeding worries and uncertainty about the massive month-long spill.

Mark Proegler, a spokesman for oil giant BP PLC, said a mile-long tube inserted into a leaking pipe over the weekend is now capturing 210,000 gallons a day - the total amount the company and the Coast Guard have estimated is gushing into the sea - but some is still escaping. He would not say how much.

Several professors who have watched video of the leak have already said they believe the amount gushing out is much higher than the official estimates.

Proegler said the 210,000 gallons - 5,000 barrels - has always been just an estimate because there is no way of measuring how much is gushing from the seafloor.

Read more: http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2010/05/20/national/main6502769.shtml?tag=stack