NEW YORK, Sept. 14 (UPI) -- An Environmental Protection Agency report says residents of Brooklyn and Queens, N.Y., are still suffering from an oil spill that happened in 1950.
The report said the ExxonMobil spill on Newton Creek, discovered in the 1970s, may be as large as 30 million gallons of oil instead of earlier estimates of 17 million, The New York Post said Thursday.
"The ugly truth is that an estimated cleanup at this rate won't be completed until 2026; the ugly truth is that homes in this area are without a doubt being impacted by this spill," said Rep. Anthony Weiner, D-N.Y., who addressed the study at a press conference at the site of a planned park along the creek on Manhattan Avenue in Brooklyn's Greenpoint section.
The study found high levels of hazardous methane gas during vapor samplings at nearby commercial establishments. While the spill is being contained, seepage into the creek continues, the report said.
