Obama tells Coast Guard to stop interfering with cleanup operations; can make recommendations but cannnot shut down operations
… Also Friday, Plaquemines Parish President Billy Nungesser said he called the White House for help after the U.S. Coast Guard shut down two of his vacuum barges, citing safety violations.
The White House provided a quick response, said Kurt Fromherz, a parish spokesman, in a news release.
“The White House called the Coast Guard saying from this point forward the Coast Guard can only make safety recommendations, and not interfere with the cleanup operations,” Fromherz said.
The two barges were then sent back to work in Bay Jimmy and Bay Baptiste, Fromherz said.
“I want to thank him for using a common sense approach and helping save our wetlands and our way of life,” Nungesser said of President Barack Obama. “It’s a shame that the agency in charge continues to stand in the way of getting our job accomplished.”
This is the second time in a week that the parish’s vacuum barges were shut down by the Coast Guard.