Oil spills into Gulf of Mexico after underwater pipe bursts

NEW ORLEANS (AP) - Federal authorities are responding to an oil spill off the coast of Louisiana.

The Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement said in a news release Friday that oil spewed out of an underwater fractured pipe in the Gulf of Mexico about 40 miles (64 kilometers) southeast of Venice, Louisiana.

The offshore oil and gas operator, LLOG Exploration Offshore, says between 7,950 and 9,350 barrels of oil were released before the spill was halted.

There were no immediate reports of injuries or of impact to the shoreline. LLOG says there is no recoverable oil on the surface.

BSEE officials say they are working with the U.S. Coast Guard to respond to the spill.

The Deepwater Horizon oil spill leaked more than 3 million barrels into the Gulf of Mexico in 2010.