The fallout from the West Atlas oil leak and rig fire off West Australia has gone global, with oil slicks reported near neighbouring countries as calls are made to acknowledge the incident as a national emergency.
The blaze that ignited on the deserted structure 200km off the Kimberley coastline yesterday continues to burn today, with fire boats watching from outside a two nautical mile exclusion zone set up due to the intense heat and hazardous fumes surrounding the site.
World Wildlife Fund conservation manager Gilly Llewellyn told ninemsn that while the fire presented a spectacular danger, the oil slick from the 10-week-old leak had spread to Indonesia and West Timor where it was threatening seaweed crops and local marine life.
"It's got to be elevated to a national emergency, not only because of the fire but also the larger environmental impact," she said.
"It's been 10 weeks since the problem was first identified and now we have this fire – it sounds like an absolute disaster out there."
Resources minister Martin Ferguson told ABC Radio that crews were focused on plugging the leak and starving the blaze of fuel.
He also admitted the incident has "clearly had an impact on the standing of the oil and gas industry in Australia".
"Once the well is filled, the platform is made safe, I will conduct a full and independent inquiry to actually assess the cause of the incident and the manner in which it has been handled in the last 10 weeks," he said.
"We've had 1500 wells drilled in Australian waters since 1984 and this is the first major incident."
Up to 400 barrels of oil per day is leaking into the ocean but Mr Ferguson claimed that around three-quarters of the spill had been mopped up in the past week.
The rig is owned by Thai exploration group PTTEP and chief financial officer Jose Martins told reporters in Perth yesterday that the company had not yet worked out how the fire started.
He said a fourth attempt at plugging the leak was made at 9.30am (CST) yesterday but the blaze ignited at 12.10pm.
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