Oil Spill Deadline Extended Until Tuesday

Crews "closing in" on source of leak

A federal official said Sunday that crews believe they're closing in on the source of a leak at a Chicago-area oil pipeline.

Sam Borries, on-scene coordinator for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, said Sunday that workers are "actively excavating" along the pipe to find the leak.

Nearly 200 local, state and federal workers have been on-site 24 hours a day since the leak was discovered Thursday in Romeoville.

Pipeline owner Enbridge Energy Partners has until noon Tuesday to stop the flow of oil, Borries said Sunday. The EPA had initially said the deadline was Monday.

It appears that the company will make the deadline, Borries said.

He estimates that 7,000 barrels of water and oil have been recovered from the site so far.

Copyright AP - Associated Press
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