>>
and
11:00 p.m
.
eastern time
.
>>>
now there is also troubling news this morning whether it comes to that
oil spill
in the
gulf of mexico
.
bp
now concedes that the leak is larger than it originally estimated and we now have a live picture of the spill showing exactly what is happening one mile under water. nbc's chief environmental affairs correspondent
anne thompson
is in venice,
louisiana
with more. anne, good morning.
>> reporter:
good morning, meredith. as
bp
prepares to try and stop the leak this weekend, the frustration level here in the
gulf coast
and in washington is growing as the oil moves in to the marshes and on to the beaches and we get our first realtime look at what's happening beneath the sea. these oily blotches stain phil and laura's daily stroll on the beach in
grand isle
.
>>
got this reddish tint.
>>
it's still incredibly sticky. then when the water recedes, you can see the oil's sheen.
>> reporter:
a sight so upsetting,
grand isle
's mayor struggled to control his anger.
>>
i'm asking the
president of the united states
to come and save our fisheries in
louisiana
because it's a crime.
>> reporter:
the oil is now thick in the marshes on the southeast
louisiana
coast and could be even bigger trouble in the coming months. this is the concern -- when the oil gets in the rosa cane, it doesn't move much, it is pretty stagnant. but imagine when a hurricane roars in, it is a completely different story.
high winds
and
storm surge
could push the oil further inland. but it was the live picture of the leak that got washington riled up. after demands from congress,
bp
provided the fee. the company said the insertion tube was now capturing up to 5,000 barrels a day, the same amount it claimed was leaking. but clearly, the picture showed oil still gushing.
>>
now we're beginning to understand that we cannot trust
bp
.
>> reporter:
that certainly was the message in a blistering letter from the obama administration to
bp
late thursday. the administration wants
bp
to make public all the information it has about the leak, writing, "those efforts to date have fallen short in both their scope and effectiveness." in new orleans, the most recent victim of the
oil spill
is recovering. a 1-year-old
sea turtle
. it was rescued this week from the oily water 35 miles from venice. now the
environmental protection agency
has directed
bp
to use a less toxic version of that chemical dispersant. this is after approving it last week. what brought about the change? well, the epa sites what it calls the unprecedented volume of the dispersant that's being used from the air and under the water to break up the so far unstoppable oil.
>>
anne thompson
, thank you very much. it gets worse and
“ ”