IN THE GULF OF MEXICO – I jump off the boat into the thickest, reddest patch of oil I’ve ever seen. I open my eyes and realize my mask is already smeared. I can’t see anything and we’re just five seconds into the dive.
Dropping beneath the surface with an oxygen tank some 40 miles out into the Gulf Of Mexico, the only thing I see is oil. To the left, right, up and down – it sits on top of the water in giant pools and hangs suspended 15 feet beneath the surface in softball-size blobs. There is nothing alive under the slick, although I see a dead jellyfish and handful of small bait fish.
I’m alone because the other divers with me wouldn’t get in the water without Hazmat suits on, and with my mask oiled over and the water already dark, I don’t dive deep.
It’s quiet, and to be honest scary, with extremely low visibility. I spend just 10 minutes swimming around taking pictures, taking video. I want people to see the spill in a new way, a way they haven’t yet.
I also want to get out of the water. Badly.