California Governor Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency in Orange County late on Monday as state agencies descended on the area to assist with cleaning up thousands of gallons of oil that leaked into the ocean over the weekend.
Newsom said the declaration was intended to "cut red tape and mobilize all available resources to protect public health and the environment."
The California Department of Fish and Wildlife has been on the scene since the weekend, coordinating with the U.S. Coast Guard to administer containment. Newsom's declaration ordered a number of additional state agencies to participate in the clean-up effort, including the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment, California State Parks and the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CalFire).
As of Monday, officials said leakage had stopped, but crews were hard at work attempting to contain and remove an estimated 126,000 of petroleum in the waters off the coast of Huntington Beach.
By Monday afternoon, more than 4,100 gallons of oil had been removed and about 8,700 feet of boom had been laid to contain the slick, according to the U.S. Coast Guard and wildlife department.
As of Tuesday morning, Amplify Energy, the company owning the ruptured pipeline believed to be the source of the leak, was still working to pinpoint the break. Officials have speculated that a ship's anchor may have struck the pipeline, causing the rupture.
In the meantime, O.C. officials have warned residents of Newport Beach, Dana Point, Laguna Beach and Huntington Beach to stay away from the coast. State wildlife authorities have also declared bans on fishing and collecting shellfish between Huntington Beach and Dana Point.
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