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By JEFFREY COLLINS, Associated Press Writer


      NEW ORLEANS (AP) - BP crews were drilling cautiously Monday to
finish a relief well designed to shoot a permanent plug into the
oil gusher that polluted the Gulf of Mexico for more than 12 weeks.


      Engineers were drilling the final 100 feet of the well in 20- to
30-foot increments before stopping to check it is still on track to
hit the busted well, said retired Coast Guard Adm. Thad Allen, the
government's point man overseeing the cleanup operation. They hope
the two well bores will intersect by the end of the week.


      The oil is already being kept in its underground reservoir by
thousands of gallons of mud and cement that were poured last week
through a cap that had been keeping the crude out of the water
since July 15. The cement cap poured on top of the oil hardened
enough over the weekend to create a solid seal, BP said.


      No one at BP or with the government has been willing to declare
victory over the spill, but Allen said Monday he is confident that
that day isn't far away.


      "This step, in our view, will permanently seal the well," said
Allen, who plans a three-day trip to Louisiana, Mississippi and
Alabama this week to talk with local officials about how to
accelerate clean up efforts as the peak of hurricane season
approaches.


      An estimated 207 million gallons of oil spilled into the Gulf
after the BP-leased Deepwater Horizon rig exploded and sank off
Louisiana on April 20. The explosion killed 11 workers and sent
crude into delicate coastal marshes and tar balls washing on to
beaches.


      BP's costs for responding to the spill have risen to $6.1
billion, the company said in a Monday news release.


      With the oil stopped, attention this week turns to the so-called
"bottom kill." Once the wells intersect, engineers will pump more
mud and cement into the busted well to completely seal it.


      One factor that could complicate drilling and cleanup work this
week is a cluster of storms over Florida expected to move across
the state and along the northern Gulf.


      The National Hurricane Center only gives it a slim chance of
developing into a tropical depression or tropical storm in the next
few days, but it should still bring a greater chance of heavy rain
and thunderstorms by Wednesday. And if it does develop further,
gusty winds and choppy seas could follow, said Tim Destri, a senior
meteorologist with the weather service's New Orleans office.


      Allen said he is watching the storms, but currently doesn't have
any plans to suspend drilling the relief well or cleanup
operations.


      Along the Gulf Coast, life is different. In tiny Theriot, La.,
the bayou-country, pre-shrimp season tradition known as the
"Blessing of the Boats" went on with barbecued chicken, smoked
sausage and potato salad instead of the usual shrimp and crab.


      Louisiana has set Aug. 16 as the opening for a fall shrimp
season along the coast, but some waters will likely remain closed
as federal authorities test the safety of the seafood.


      "I got a boat that's ready," said Ravin Lacoste, 57. "But we
don't know what's going to open up."


      Kevin McGill in Theriot, La., contributed to this report.
      

BP says it still might drill in spill reservoir

As Gulf plug firms up, BP shakes up its spill team

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Environmental News

BP crews were drilling cautiously Monday to
finish a relief well designed to shoot a permanent plug into the
oil gusher that polluted the Gulf of Mexico for more than 12 weeks.

Final plug targeted as BP resumes relief well work

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