Medical Issues After Oil Spill Along California Coastline – Class Action Investigation into Amplify Energy Corp. Oil Spill

The Chimicles Firm is investigating a potential law suit related to the massive oil spill off the coast of Huntington Beach in Orange County, California that was first reported on Saturday morning, October 3. The spill originated from a pipeline running from the Port of Long Beach to an offshore oil platform named “Elly” operated by Houston-based Amplify Energy Corporation (“Amplify Energy”). More than 126,000 gallons of oil gushed into the Catalina Channel creating an oil slick that has already spanned more than 8,300 acres and continues to head south from Huntington Beach. With chunks of tar heading ashore, beaches and waterways have already been forced to close including Huntington Beach, Newport Beach and Harbor, Laguna Beach, and Crystal Cove State Park.

CNN reports that Katrina Foley, Orange County Supervisor, states that the spill “has devasted our California coastline in Orange County, and it’s having a tremendous impact on our ecological preserved as well as our economics. We need answers.” Orange County health officials are also said to have advised their residents to avoid recreational activities on the coastline and recommend people seek medical attention if they have come into contact with the oil. “Effects of the oil or dispersants on people could include eye and skin irritation headache and vomiting, with children and older people more at risk.”

The pipeline and operations at three off-shore platform owned by Amplify Energy have now been shut down, and booms have been deployed on the ocean surface to try to contain the spill while divers seek to determine the place and cause of the leak. The Los Angeles Times reports the Chief of Marine Safety for Laguna Beach Kevin Snow, stating that “Beach closures are needed to protect the health and safety of the public and to allow contractors to begin oil cleanup.”

If you worked on the Elly oil platform, or other nearby Amplify Energy platforms, or any other company’s oil platforms or vessels in the vicinity of the oil spill, and you believe you may have medical problems as a result, please contact the attorneys listed below.