This rig is in inland waters, and will surely cause more difficulties for crews trying to stop the bleeding farther out in the Gulf.

It will hamper efforts to clear up oil from a massive spill in the Gulf of Mexico which is starting to ooze ashore in the southeastern US, threatening birds and other wildlife along fragile islands and barrier marshes and putting one of the world's richest seafood grounds in peril.

Crews in boats were patrolling coastal marshes early Friday looking for areas where the oil has flowed in, the Coast Guard said. Storms loomed that could push tide waters higher than normal through the weekend, the National Weather Service warned.

If there is good news to come from these disasters, it's the news that the Obama administration will not authorize new drilling, at least for the time being:

David Axelrod told ABC television that "no additional drilling has been authorised and none will until we find out what has happened here." Obama recently lifted a drilling moratorium for many offshore areas, including the Atlantic and Gulf areas. Read more...

More as it develops...

UPDATE: Video of Axelrod/Stephanopoulis interview re: stopping new offshore projects:

GMA:

Axelrod said no new drilling in domestic areas will go forward until "there is an adequate review of what happened here and what is being proposed elsewhere."

Speaking strictly for me, Axelrod's response was a bit too carefully worded. The moratorium should be reinstated, and no new offshore projects authorized.

(h/t Shoq)