Fury and Despair as BP Admits Oil Could Gush for Months

An uncontrollable fountain of oil could gush into the Gulf of Mexico until August, the Obama administration warned today, as BP conceded it was moving to a containment strategy after failing to plug the well at the centre of the most environmentally disastrous spill in US history.

As anger and despair grew in the coastal communities of Louisiana, BP began preparations to cut a leaking drill pipe on the ocean floor and attach a containment cap intended to capture at least some of the 12,000 to 19,000 barrels of crude spewing from its Macondo well every day.

The oil company, which has come under withering attack for its handling of the crisis, acknowledged there was "no certainty" of success in the effort, which will take four to seven days and which some experts say could make the leak worse.'

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