BP Tar Balls Wash Ashore in Texas

By Eileen Fleming

New Orleans, La. – Tar balls are washing up on Texas state beaches near Galveston. The discovery of about seven gallons of tar balls over the weekend means the oil spill has made landfall over 550 miles stretching from Texas to the Florida Panhandle. The Coast Guard says the oil could have arrived on ships that passed through the oil, or by riding currents into the area. The tar balls were the size of ping pong balls or smaller, and the mayor Galveston says he considers the appearance a fluke and not a harbinger of more to come. Area beaches remain open.
For NPR News, I'm Eileen Fleming.