Large waves churned up by Hurricane Alex have left Alabama beaches splattered with oil and tar balls and have apparently turned away many beachgoers.
The weather was breezy and partly cloudy Wednesday morning with no rain, but hardly anyone was out on the sand at Orange Beach other than cleanup workers.
Red flags warning people to stay out of the water stood straight in strong gusts, and long stretches of beach were stained brown from tar balls and crude oil as far as 60 yards from the edge of the water.
Oil deposits appeared worse than in past days, and local officials feared the temporary halt to skimming operations near the coast would only make matters worse as tourists come to the beach for the July 4 holiday.
(Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.) via WAKA.com
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