Following a news conference Thursday in which he voiced resolve and regret over the way the Gulf oil spill has been handled, President Barack Obama visited the Louisiana coast on Friday to see the environmental devastation firsthand and to survey efforts to plug the Deepwater Horizon undersea gusher. –JCL

Reuters:

Obama visited the Louisiana coast, where sticky oil has permeated wetlands, closed down the lucrative fishing trade and angered locals whose communities are still recovering from Hurricane Katrina in 2005.

BP Chief Executive Tony Hayward said the so-called top kill procedure, in which heavy drilling “mud” is pumped into the seabed well shaft, was showing some signs of success in choking off the leak that has already spewed millions of gallons of oil into the Gulf.

But the success of the operation, never attempted at such depths, was still uncertain and it could be another 48 hours before it would be known whether it was successful, he said.

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#barack obama#bp plc#deepwater horizon#gulf of mexico#hurricane katrina#louisiana#press conference#vacation