U.S. officials have detected a small leak in the capping stack that is plugging a blown-out well in the Gulf of Mexico, but tests of the cap's containment abilities will continue for another 24 hours.
Thad Allen, the retired Coast Guard admiral who is serving as Washington's point man on the disaster, told reporters Monday afternoon that officials detected a "leakage" in the capping stack.
The latest anomaly adds to other problems scientists have discovered since July 17, including a seepage about 3 nautical miles from the wellhead and bubbles around the well's blowout preventer, which failed to avert the April explosion on the Deepwater Horizon that killed 11 workers.
Allen said officials do not believe the anomalies are "consequential at this time."
"There is no indication at this time that this is any indication of a significant problem in the well bore, but we are running every one of these anomalies down," Allen said.
Allen said it could be the leaks are pre-existing problems sensors could not detect while the well was open and leaking millions of litres of oil into the water.
However, if scientists come to believe the leaks threaten the integrity of the well bore, or notice a significant drop in pressure, officials will immediately vent the well.
Allen said he was awaiting a letter from BP with information he requested about current containment operations and how carefully the company is monitoring the seepages and leakages from the well. The company must also report any anomalies to U.S. officials and act on them "within four hours."
Allen also said Monday that officials will continue monitoring the containment cap for another 24 hours, despite concerns that the pressure in the well is lower than expected. Allen said Monday afternoon the pressure is about 6,811 PSI, and continues to rise by about a pound every hour.
Allen said scientists will meet in Houston Monday evening to assess the latest data and other information from BP.
Meanwhile, BP revealed early Monday that it had spent nearly $4 billion in the aftermath of the oil disaster, including at least $207 million in compensation to U.S.-based victims of the oil spill.
The blown-out oil well has stopped gushing oil into the Gulf since the experimental cap closed it off last Thursday.
The cap is intended to serve only as a short-term solution, with plans for two undersea relief wells to stop the leak in the long term.
With files from The Associated Press
