Mississippi River Closed A New Orleans After Barge Spills Oil

There is a long stretch of the Mississippi River that is still closed today after there was a weekend collision were crude oil started spilling from a barge.

A Coast Guard spokesman says that a 65-mile stretch of the river is affected by the closure, and some 26 vessels on the river have been affected by the closure.

There is a status conference call today to figure out what how much oil has spilled and when the river might be re-opened.

Coast Guard officials say so far there is only a light sheen on the river, but they closed the river to avoid contamination to any passing vessels and to prevent the oil from going into any other part of the river.

No one was injured in Saturday's accident.  A barge and tugboat hit each other near Vacherie.