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May 12, 2010
Councilman wants locals to get work first
GULFPORT — Councilman R.Lee Flowers is strongly urging British Petroleum to honor the mandate set by the state Department of Marine Resources, requiring all boat captains hired to work the oil spill be licensed charter boat captains.
The DMR requirement means that before BP can hire a boat captain to assist in the response effort, the Coast Guard must deem the boat a “vessel of opportunity,” and the captain must prove he has held a Mississippi captain’s license for at least two years.
“In times like these, we often hear of people coming in to take advantage of the available work, and the last thing we want is for someone to take advantage of our local fishermen in the hour of their greatest need,” Flowers said. “I applaud the efforts of DMR and together we want to make certain that the people who get the first crack at these jobs are South Mississippi fisherman, shrimpers and oysterman who’s livelihoods have been threatened by this disaster.”
As of last week, nearly 200 vessels had been assigned various jobs in response to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. To learn more about the Vessels of Opportunity program, click here.
Office of Public Information - rlafontaine@gulfport-ms.gov - Phone: 228-868-5782
P.O. Box 1780 Gulfport, MS 39502-1780 - FAX: 868-5800
