Nearly 800 people in several oil removal operations were busy containing the spill with booms and removing what they could from the water, as a limited number of vessels were being allowed through the affected area in southern Louisiana.

The Coast Guard had closed off a 100-mile (160-kilometer) stretch of the river, from the port of New Orleans down to the Gulf of Mexico, after the oil tanker Tintomara collided Wednesday with an American Commercial Lines barge that was being pushed by a tug boat.

"The (Coast Guard's) Unified Command is working diligently to ensure personal safety, to expedite pollution mitigation efforts and to resume commercial traffic as soon as practically possible," the Coast Guard said in a statement.

"A plan to salvage the barge is being developed."

The 600-foot (183-meter) oil tanker sustained no damage but the crash split the barge nearly in two, and the thick, smelly oil poured into the river just off the banks of downtown New Orleans.

A total of 188,000 feet (57,000 meters) of boom was spread up and down the river bed and around the barge in order to contain the oil, the Coast Guard said.

New Orleans city officials promised residents that the drinking water was safe, even as a chemical odor wafted over the waterfront city and scientists set up a rescue operation for oily birds and animals.

But some people including the head of the port of New Orleans were griping that authorities were not working fast enough to get the vital waterway open to commercial traffic.

The spill's effects and the closure of the port were costing the region a massive 275 million dollars per day, the New Orleans Times-Picayune cited port president Gary LaGrange as saying Friday

Ninety-five vessels were waiting to transit the river as of mid-day Saturday, the Coast Guard reported.

It was unclear how long the port would remain closed.

The operators of the tugboat did not have the proper license to be operating on the river, said the Coast Guard on Friday, after launching an investigation along with the National Transportation Safety Board.

The New Orleans Times-Picayune reported Saturday that the company operating the "Mel Oliver," the tugboat that was pushing the barge in Wednesday's accident, had another of its tugs sink in a Mississippi River collision just 11 days earlier.

The paper said the Ruby E sank July 12, about four miles (six kilometers) upriver from Wednesday's accident, after colliding with another boat.

earlier related report
Massive oil spill clogs Mississippi River
The Mississippi River reopened to limited traffic on Friday, two days after a barge collided with a tanker spilling hundreds of thousands of gallons of fuel oil, the US Coast Guard said.

Oil cleanup crews were busy containing the spill with booms and removing what they could from the water, according to local reports, as a handful of vessels began moving in the area.

The Coast Guard had closed off a 100-mile (160-kilometer) stretch of the river, from the port of New Orleans down to the Gulf of Mexico, after the oil tanker Tintomara collided Wednesday with an American Commercial Lines barge that was being pushed by a tug boat.

"The Coast Guard opened the river today at noon (1600 GMT), to limited use," the Coast Guard said in a statement.

Clean-up crews have been trying to contain the 419,000 gallons (1.6 million liters) of fuel oil which spilled into the river.

New Orleans city officials promised residents that the drinking water was safe, even as a chemical odor wafted over the waterfront city and scientists set up a rescue operation for oily birds and animals.

The 600-foot (183-meter) oil tanker sustained no damage but the crash split the barge nearly in two, and the thick, smelly oil poured into the river just off the banks of downtown New Orleans.

The operators of the tugboat did not have the proper license to be operating on the river, said the Coast Guard, which has launched an investigation along with the National Transportation Safety Board.

"There were no properly licensed individuals on the vessel during the time that the incident occurred," the Coast Guard said.

The closure of the port of New Orleans was having an economic impact topping 100 million dollars per day, while the impact on the entire area affected by the spill was a massive 275 million dollars per day, the New Orleans Times-Picayune cited port president Gary LaGrange as saying.

It was unclear how long the port would remain closed.

As of Friday morning, the barge remained stuck in the river as workers rushed to contain the spill.

"Additional crews are steadily coming in all day," Coast Guard spokesman Thomas Blue told AFP, saying that about 300 people were already involved in the cleanup.

"Anytime there is a spill there are always environmental concerns," Blue said, adding that the Coast Guard was working with US Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

A total of 67,000 feet (20,420 meters) of boom was spread up and down the river bed and around the barge in order to contain the oil, Blue said.

The material floats on water and helps prevent oil from spreading into wildlife habitats and drinking water intake pipes.

Commercial Lines has submitted a salvage plan for the barge to the Coast Guard for approval and work on extracting the boat was expected to start later in the day, Blue said.

Government scientists set up a cleaning station for birds and other animals caught in the spill, according to local reports.

Local residents rushed to buy bottled water despite assurances by the Sewerage and Water Board that the drinking water was safe.

New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin urged "moderation" in consumption of tap water.

"The mayor's saying, 'Drink the water in moderation,' so does that mean I'm going to get moderately sick? Or are my guests going to get moderately sick?" cafe owner Ed Moise was quoted as saying by the Times-Picayune.

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