The Gulf of Mexico is a Mediterranean-type sea that is shared by the United States of America, Mexico and Cuba. It provides a wide array of valuable resources such as crude oil and natural gas which provides an ample amount of money to bordering nations. Aside from that, it also has a very abundant supply of commercial fishes such as shellfish and crabs as well. The Gulf has really contributed to massive revenue harbored by these nations.
On April 20, 2010, the once very productive sea is being threatened by a man-made disaster that is projected to be the worst in history. An explosion on the Deepwater Horizon oil platform and has been leaking not less than 5,000 barrels of oil per day. This catastrophic event has inflicted a massive environmental disaster which has also affected the revenues of businesses that are based on the Gulf.
Sheryl Lindsay is the owner of a wedding planner business which conducts beach-themed weddings in the Gulf. She reportedly received over 30 wedding cancellations which has greatly affected their income. Without a decent income and a monthly office rental payment, her business is well on its way to bankruptcy. She is just one of the 145,000 claimants who has lost their business since the oil spill and are now seeking for some assistance from BP.
BP claimed that it had released $324 million to pay every single claim from residents and business affected by the disaster. In contrast, frustrated claimants pointed out over 39,000 claims that have not been given attention yet. Mississippi Attorney General Jim Hood stated that the BP doesn’t deny them but instead just hold them forever. There are also problems with regards to who are eligible to these claims.
Hood also speculated that BP might just be waiting for the appointed administrator of the $20 billion compensation fund Kenneth Feinberg, to take over the claims distribution. He sees this as a major strategy in protecting the firm’s image. Through this, a denial of claim will be directly blamed to Feinberg instead of BP.
What is intriguing is when BP proudly stated that they haven’t rejected any claim yet. This is strongly opposed by residents of the area who claimed that they were rejected for various reasons. Is BP desperate to maintain a good image despite its already damaged reputation across globe? Whatever the motive is, BP should pay these people rightfully. The blame for such disaster must still be directed to BP as they were not able to maintain a safe working environment. They should be speeding up the process for claims as businesses are starting to crumble as days pass by.
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