By Eileen Fleming
http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/wwno/local-wwno-900769.mp3
New Orleans, La. – The metal and steel chamber is designed to contain the oil so it can be piped up to a tanker on the surface. After it settles on the seabed, robots will install pipes needed for pumping. The operation is unprecedented in such deep water, where high pressure and cold temperatures could snap the damaged pipes and make the leak even worse. It's ultimately a temporary solution to stop 210,000 gallons of crude feeding an oil slick every day. That oil is now fouling the Louisiana coast and threatening shoreline all the way to Florida. BP executives caution that the new technology is bound to have glitches, and will take days before oil is diverted into the tanker. BP is simultaneously drilling a relief well to permanently cap the leak.
For NPR News, I'm Eileen Fleming in New Orleans.