Tropical Storm Alex Threatens Mexico, May Spare BP Cleanup

Tropical Storm Alex bore down on the coast of Belize and the Yucatan Peninsula today, and may spare BP Plc’s efforts to contain and clean up the largest oil spill in U.S. history. “This should have a very minimal effect on the cleanup,” said Jill Hasling, executive director of the Weather Research Center in Houston, which provides weather forecasts to the oil industry worldwide. She said the closest approach to the leaking well might be 400 miles (643 kilometers), based on the storm’s current track. Alex is about 75 miles (120 kilometers) east of Belize City and is moving to the west-northwest at about 13 mph, according to a 2 p.m. local time advisory from the U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami. The storm has maximum sustained winds of about 45 mph, more than the 39 mph threshold needed to be classified a tropical storm. Admiral Thad Allen said the U.S. Coast Guard is monitoring the Atlantic season’s first tropical storm, which is poised to pass through the southern end of the Gulf of Mexico. The rig is located in the northern end of the Gulf.