Spills · oil

Mystery sheen main pass 61; gulf of mexico

NOAAORR-10143

issued: 2020-08-10 00:00Z
status: cancelled 2020-08-24 00:00Z
self-cancels: 2020-08-24 00:00Z
authority: NOAA OR&R
sea: Gulf of Mexico
position: 29.316, -88.920
source: incidentnews · first seen 2026-09-03 15:09Z

Original warning text

Mystery Sheen Main Pass 61; Gulf of Mexico.
Gulf of Mexico.
1. ON August 10, 2020, the USCG received notification of a mystery sheen in Main Pass 61 off the coast of Louisiana. The sheen was 8mi x 1/2mi heading west to east. USCG requested a hindcast to determine the potential for association with a previous incident.
2. THREAT: OIL.
3. POSITION 29.316N 088.920W. NOAA INCIDENTNEWS 10143: https://incidentnews.noaa.gov/incident/10143

This area · spills & pollution incidents

998 within 180 nm since 1970 · 34 in the last 12 months · 2 in force now

Crude oil spill and in-situ burn at tpic; south pass 24, pilottown, louisiana2026-08-26
8X38+5H dauphin island, al, USA2026-08-24
Mystery sheen at south pass 29; port eads, louisiana2026-08-13
Wcc oil spill, main pass 21; breton sound, louisiana2026-06-11
Tpic oil spill, main pass 81; gulf of america2026-06-10
Oil spill from out-of-service tank at tpic main pass 69 facility; louisiana2026-05-19

Season · when spills & pollution incidents happen here

month of issue, all years in the archive

Timeline · 19 messages since 2020-05-03 · closed 2020-11-15

Main pass 75 pipeline release; la, USA2020-05-03 → 2020-05-17
Gulf of mexico, la, USA2020-05-31 → 2020-06-14
Crude oil discharge in baptiste collete bayou area; venice, la 70091, USA2020-06-12 → 2020-06-26
Tpic romere pass, delta national wildlife refuge, oil spill; venice, la, USA2020-06-16 → 2020-06-30
Whitney tank battery 49 garden island bay oil spill; venice, la, USA2020-06-18 → 2020-07-02
Whitney oil and gas spill well #256; venice, la2020-06-22 → 2020-07-06
Tpic 2-69 well unit 2 delta duck oil spill; venice, la USA2020-06-23 → 2020-07-07
Hilcorp 212 facility, lake grand ecaille spill; la, USA2020-07-11 → 2020-07-25
Venice, la, USA2020-07-12 → 2020-07-26
Mystery sheen main pass 61; gulf of mexico this message2020-08-10 → 2020-08-24
Main pass 69A sheen; la, USA2020-08-11 → 2020-08-25
On august 13, 2020, the uscg sector nola notified the noaa ssc of a 7bbl well leak and 1.5mi x 1mi rainbow…2020-08-13 → 2020-08-27
Tpic MP35 produced water discharge; main pass 35, la, USA2020-08-20 → 2020-09-03
Hilcorp E8 platform oil spill; venice, la 70091, USA2020-08-21 → 2020-09-04
Venice, la, USA2020-08-29 → 2020-09-12
On september 26, 2020, the uscg sector nola received nrc reports #1288319 and #1288318 regarding an allision…2020-09-30 → 2020-10-14
On september 30, 2020, the uscg sector new orleans notified the noaa ssc of multiple reports of oil sheen…2020-09-30 → 2020-10-14
Hurricane zeta (28 oct 20) impacted saratoga resources test facility (NWF561) operated by lobo operating…2020-10-31 → 2020-11-14
Venice, la, USA2020-11-01 → 2020-11-15

joined by proximity

Nearby now · within 120 nm

Crude oil spill and in-situ burn at tpic; south pass 24, pilottown, louisianaSpills · 23.8 nm
Uscg remote communication facility new orleans 29-53.00N 089-57.00W mf and hf dsc off airNav aids · 63.6 nm
8X38+5H dauphin island, al, USASpills · 75.1 nm

Worldwide now

8 spills & pollution incidents in force · see all

Spills

Oil and chemical spills, groundings and vessel casualties with a pollution threat: NOAA IncidentNews responses since 1957, and spill-response areas broadcast as navigational warnings. All current spills & pollution incidents →

Not for navigation. This is a re-rendering of an official navigational warning for awareness; mariners must use official NAVAREA broadcasts and their national MSI service.