New Oil Spill Video Released Revealing Depths Of Environmental Despair

Just when you may have thought that the Gulf oil spill was falling out of the news spotlight, new video footage emerges that reminds us of the scale and enormous impact of this environmental (and potentially economic) disaster. First is a 30 second clip of the actual leak: crude oil spilling into the water which was taped via cameras mounted to robotic vehicles sent 5,000 feet into the ocean. The second is what appears to be a homemade video from Alabama resident John Wathen as a volunteer pilot flew him over the area where the oil rig sank. Both are incredibly effective.

The first video featured on The Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer and reported by Ed Lavandera:

The second clip is a homemade video made by John Wathen, an environmentalist from Tuscaloosa, Alabama who narrates the 5 minute video clip shot from an airplane flying overhead. The plaintive voice and southern drawl transcends political opinion, particularly when Wathen claims that he has never used the word “hopeless” before to describe an environmental disaster. Until now.

The video is just beginning to go viral – expect to read and hear more about it in the coming days.

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