Dauphin Island Real Estate Rentals

August 20

Alabama Waters Now Open for Crab Harvest

The Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources Marine Resources Division (MRD) announces the re-opening to the harvest of crabs from all areas previously closed as a precautionary response to the presence of oil from the Deepwater Horizon Incident. These areas include all Alabama Gulf of Mexico waters out to three miles, Pelican Bay, Mississippi Sound and the waters of Mobile Bay that are just north of the Fort Morgan Peninsula. These waters will reopen at 6 a.m., Saturday, August 21. This includes both commercial and recreational crabbing.
ADCNR has worked closely with the Alabama Department of Public Health, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to ensure the health and safety of the public during the events following the Deepwater Horizon incident. In correspondence addressing the results of recent testing of crabs from the remaining closed areas, the FDA states that, “The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has concluded that the conditions for reopening specified in our agreed upon reopening protocol have been met for crab in the areas and that such seafood will pose no food safety risk associated with contamination from the Deepwater Horizon explosion, fire and oil spill.”

August 16

All Alabama Waters Now Open for Fishing

The Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources Marine Resources Division (MRD) announces the re-opening to the harvest of fish from all areas previously closed as a precautionary response to the presence of oil from the Deepwater Horizon Incident. These areas include all Alabama Gulf of Mexico waters out to three miles and the remaining closed waters of Mobile Bay that are just north of the Fort Morgan Peninsula. These waters reopened at 6 a.m., Monday, August 16. This includes both commercial and recreational fishing. In addition to finfish, the area north of Fort Morgan is also open to shrimping.
ADCNR has worked closely with the Alabama Department of Public Health, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to ensure the health and safety of the public during the events following the Deepwater Horizon incident. In correspondence addressing the results of recent testing of seafood from the remaining closed areas, the FDA states that, “Sensory evaluation of 50 finfish and 16 shrimp samples for odors indicative of contamination was conducted on August 11-12, 2010. No samples demonstrated odors indicative of oil or dispersant contamination. After sensory evaluation, the samples were forwarded to a chemistry laboratory for polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) analysis. Compositing of like species from like sample locations resulted in 10 separate finfish and three separate shrimp samples for PAH analysis. All samples were analyzed using the LC-Fluorescence method. The chemical analyses were completed on August 13, 2010. PAH levels in all samples are significantly below the levels of concern established in the reopening protocol, which was agreed upon by Alabama officials, NOAA and FDA.”
Harvest of crabs is still prohibited in all areas that were closed including the Gulf of Mexico, Mississippi Sound, Pelican Bay and the area in Mobile Bay north of Fort Morgan, with analyses being conducted on blue crabs from our areas. The results will be made public as soon as they are received.

Dauphin Island Video Update - 8-11-10

August 8

Alabama's portion of Mississippi Sound reopened to fishing and shrimping today - The Alabama Marine Resources Division announces that Alabama state waters west of the Dauphin Island Bridge and north of Dauphin Island that were closed as a precautionary measure due to the Deepwater Horizon disaster will reopen for recreational and commercial fishing effective at 6 a.m. August 8, 2010. All areas in Mississippi Sound not permanently closed will also reopen for shrimping at this time. full news release

Testing of samples from Gulf waters will be completed within the next couple of days and waters will likely be reopened to fishing and shrimping sometime next week.

August 5

As cement flows into broken oil well, boom comes out of the water - BP finished pumping fresh cement into its blown-out oil well Thursday, virtually assuring there is no longer a chance of oil leaking into the environment, according to company and federal officials. full story

Broken well now sealed with cement - BP finished pumping fresh cement into its blown-out oil well Thursday as aimed to seal for good the ruptured pipe that for months spewed crude into Gulf of Mexico...
full story

Dauphin Island Video Update - 7-31-10

July 31

Dauphin Island's beaches remain clean and our waters are clear. Most BP cleanup workers have been placed on a standby status. Dauphin Island has been very fortunate to have avoided most of the effects of the oil spill. All swimming restrictions have been lifted and improvements in beach conditions for Mobile and Baldwin counties have prompted the Alabama Department of Public Health (ADPH) to lift all swimming advisories. The department has replaced red swimming advisory signs with yellow signs that outline precautions for beachgoers.

Information on Oil Spill Issued by ADPH - 7-30-10

"The Gulf of Mexico oil spill prompted ADPH to issue health advisories. In June, ADPH issued advisories against swimming in waters off Gulf Shores, Orange Beach, Fort Morgan, Dauphin Island, and Mississippi Sound, and in bay waters close to Fort Morgan, Bayou St. John, Terry Cove, Cotton Bayou and Old River.

Improvements in beach conditions have led the department to lift all swimming advisories. We recognize that even in the absence of visible oil, oil products may still be present in the sand or in the water. The department will replace red swimming advisory signs with yellow signs that outline several precautions for beachgoers. The department will continue to monitor this evolving situation and will update beach notices as needed."

Public Health Advisories
"The department continues to encourage individuals not to enter waters should there be visible oil present in the water. Beachgoers should take the following simple precautions:

Protective Measures
• Avoid contact with oil. (Don't handle tar balls.)
• If you get tar balls on your skin, wash with soap and water. Do not use harsh detergents, solvents, or other chemicals to remove oil from skin or clothing; it may promote absorption of oil through the skin.
• If you get oil on your clothing, just launder as usual."

Waters in Mobile Bay are now open to all fishing, shrimping and crabbing, and the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources is in the process of testing fish samples from the Gulf waters for any possible oil contamination. Only catch and release fishing is currently allowed, but it is anticipated that all of Alabama's Gulf waters will be reopened to all fishing activities sometime during the next couple of weeks!

It appears that we may finally be getting back to normal and, due to earlier cancellations, we do have many openings for the remainder of our summer season. Y'all come on down!

Online reservations: View all of our rental homes and condos and make your reservations today.

July 25

Our beaches are very clean and the Gulf waters are a little stirred up today but not bad considering the fairly good-sized waves from the remnants of TD Bonnie. All in all it's a very pleasant day at the beach!

Dauphin Island Video Update - July 24

July 24

TD Bonnie headed inland with little more than a wimper Saturday night. What was Tropical Storm Bonnie passed south of Dauphin Island and hit the Louisiana coast as nothing more than a disorganized low pressure system. Crews have already been sent back to the site of the oil spill. We here on the Island were actually hoping for a bit of much-needed rain from Bonnie but we didn't get a single drop!

July 23

Tropical Storm Bonnie weakens after it makes landfall south of Miami...heading toward site of oil rig disaster. Crews evacuated from the site of the oil spill.

full article

July 22

Tropical depression moving toward Gulf oil spill - A tropical depression has formed over the Bahamas and is moving toward the site of massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. full article

July 21

Mobile Bay Waters Reopen To Shrimping - Waters from Dauphin Island to Gulf Shores will reopen to shrimping on Friday morning. That includes Mobile Bay and Wolf Bay. full article

July 14

Pieces of Deepwater Horizon rig wash up on Dauphin Island full article

June 28

Additional oil barrier is planned.

Joy B. Earp
Team Leader, Coastal Alabama
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
Mobile District, Regulatory Division
P. O. Box 2288, Mobile, AL 36628-0001

If no major objections are received, we plan to authorize this request by Emergency Permit. Should we receive no agency comment, this will be considered as agency concurrence/waiver or no objection to the proposed
project. However, the applicant will need State WQ/CZM and any leases/permits from ADCNR-State Lands Division.

PROPOSED WORK: The applicant proposes to hydraulically dredge four (4) million cubic yards of sand material from the Gulf of Mexico to create a beach and dune system fronting Dauphin Island. The dredged sand would be placed in three sections along the southern shoreline of the island. The proposed work would include refurbishing existing dunes on the eastern end of the island and the creation of a new dune system and expanded beach on the west end of the island. For detailed information, please refer to enclosed
Application and Project Description/Drawings.

LOCATION - Beach/Berm: Gulf of Mexico, Dauphin Island, Mobile County, Alabama. Specifically, the project is located along three sections of the southern shoreline of Dauphin Island: The western section is located along
the western four (4) miles south of Bienville Blvd along the southern shore and waters of the Gulf (Latitude 30° 14' 52"N, Longitude -88° 11' 29"W). The two eastern sections are located along the eastern 1.75 miles of the
island along the southern shore and the waters of Pelican Bay (Latitude 30° 14' 35"N and Longitude -88° 06' 17"W also at Latitude 30° 14' 46"N and Longitude -88° 04' 36"W). The applicant is to provide confirmation that allwork in the eastern sections would be above the Mean High Tide line.

LOCATION - dredge site: The proposed sand borrow area is a 0.9 mile/square six-sided polygon-shaped area located approximately one mile south-southwest of Sand Island Lighthouse and 5 miles south of the eastern tip of Dauphin Island, within State of Alabama waters/Gulf of Mexico. The proposed borrow area is located primarily within the Sand Island Beneficial Use Disposal Area.

PURPOSE: The applicant has stated that the dredged sand would be placed in three sections along the southern shoreline of Dauphin Island, Alabama to create a protective barrier berm (dune and beach) system designed to prevent storm surge with oil from over washing onto and across the island during tropical storms and minor hurricanes. The applicant has stated that this design is the minimum size of emergency project that will achieve the desired level of protection for the next two years.

View full permit (PDF File)

June 26

Conservation Department Opens State Waters for Catch and Release Fishing

Effective immediately, the Alabama Department of Conservation announces the opening for recreational catch and release fishing in State waters closed to fishing in response to the presence of oil. Closed State waters include all Gulf waters out to the 3-mile State/Federal line, Mississippi Sound avoiding Katrina Cut, and the area south of a line extending east from Mobile Ship Channel Marker 22 to Little Point Clear. Anglers shall not keep or possess fish while in closed waters. All fishing remains prohibited in Federal waters. Anglers are reminded to stay clear of booms and booming operations, all working vessels, and areas with visible oil and/or sheen.

“Many fish for the pure pleasure of catching and then releasing already. We see no reason why that activity can’t continue,” said Conservation Commissioner Barnett Lawley.
The Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources promotes wise stewardship, management and enjoyment of Alabama’s natural resources through five divisions: Marine Police, Marine Resources, State Lands, State Parks, and Wildlife and Freshwater Fisheries.

June 25

Mobile Bay ferry between Dauphin Island and Fort Morgan may be erratic due to oil in water
By Associated Press
3:20 PM CDT, June 25, 2010

MOBILE, Ala. (AP) — The Mobile Bay ferry that runs between Dauphin Island and Fort Morgan may have to be suspended at times because of oil in that area of the bay.
State transportation officials said it would be suspended around noon Friday, but skimmers removed the oil and the service continued. It wasn't certain for how long. The BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico has been ongoing since an April 20 rig explosion.

The Marissa Mae Nicole, the ferry providing the service, will be protected by boom if it has to be docked at Dauphin Island. It would be moved farther up into the bay if oil conditions require it.

The state transportation agency regularly runs two ferries across the mouth of Mobile Bay. The other ferry, the Fort Morgan, is currently undergoing repairs.

Mobile Operations Summary: Day-End Brief June 25

Oil impact is imminent. Efforts are underway to corral and skim the known oil patches to protect the beaches being threatened.
Beach Operations
· West End DI: 271 Personnel (16 Crews), 200 lb tar balls, 340 lb debris
· East End DI: 245 Personnel (18 Crews), nothing collected
· West Island: 58 Personnel (8 Crews), 2400 lb oil, 400 lb oily debris
· Crews had two tasks – deploy snare and sorbent at the shoreline to protect against incoming oil, and also clean oil from the shores.
· Snare and sorbent were deployed in 3 places: near the public pier on Dauphin, on the south shore at the west end, and on the north shore of West Point Island and the west end. About 12,000’ total deployed at one point, and most of it was removed before the end of the day.

June 24

Swimming advisories again issued for Dauphin Island and Mississippi Sound

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT:
Andy Mullins
(334) 206-3394

The Alabama Department of Public Health continues taking steps to protect the public's health
as a result of developments concerning the Gulf oil spill.

Oil has been projected to impact Dauphin Island and in Alabama waters west of the Dauphin
Island Bridge, also known as Mississippi Sound, on Friday and Saturday. In response, the
Alabama Department of Public Health is issuing a swimming advisory for beaches in these
areas effective 6 p.m. Thursday. Because of the expected presence of visible oil in Gulf waters
adjacent to Dauphin Island, individuals are discouraged from swimming in these waters. The
Alabama Department of Public Health will be posting signs advising residents not to swim.

Trajectories continue to predict impact on the Baldwin County beaches over the next 72 hours,
so no advisories will be lifted.

Dr. Donald Williamson, state health officer, said, "These are precautionary measures to protect
the public's health. We will continue to monitor the situation and reassess the need for further
advisories if the situation changes."

June 12

The weather today is hot and our waters around the Island are still beautiful. There has been no significant change in the amount oil coming ashore on the Island but unfortunately, a good bit has washed up on beaches at Gulf Shores and Orange Beach - Article and video It could be only a matter of time before we see something like this here on Dauphin Island, but we still hope that by some miracle we are able to escape the worst. The Island is prepared and the beaches are being kept very clean.

BP crews patrol the beach every day, all day long, and any oil/tarballs is cleaned up pretty quicky. So far, there has not been enough oil on the Island to present a danger to birds or marine life...no oiled birds like we are seeing in Louisiana. The BP crews seem to be doing a pretty good job, but the removal of tar balls is very labor intensive. BP authorized Gulf Shores to purchase 10 mechanical beach cleaning machines. It would be nice if we could get a couple of these on Dauphin Island as it would speed up the daily beach cleanup

For guests interested in visiting Dauphin Island, our beaches are still open and the Gulf waters are clean. The BP cleanup effort on the Island is something definitely history in the making and well worth witnessing. We do have lots of our nicest properties available due to the many cancellations that we have received. If you book a reservation with us and decide to cancel, we will issue an immediate refund ...even for last-minute cancellations.

Katrina Cut to be Filled - Gov. Bob Riley announced that a mile-wide breach on the west end of Dauphin Island known as the Katrina Cut will be filled in to protect Mobile Bay and the Mississippi Sound from oil.
The $15 million project will be paid for with money BP provide to the state.
The project will move forward as soon as it gains Coast Guard approval. Riley said he expects Coast Guard approval soon. Some of the state’s primary commercial oyster beds and estuaries that support a wide array of sea life lie just north of Dauphin Island. The gap on the west end of Dauphin Island was created by Hurricane Katrina.

All Alabama waters in Mississippi Sound have been closed to all fishing. Article

Additional Alabama waters under a swimming advisory. In addition to all Gulf waters in Mobile and Baldwin counties, additional inshore waters in both counties are under new advisory. Article

Huge Globs of oil reported south of Orange Beach. Article

June 4

We just got back from a walk on the West End. What tarballs we observed were of the rice-grain size variety...with a very few dime-sized ones...one of these larger ones in about every 50 feet along the beach. The smell of oil was noticeable. This may be due to offshore burning of the oil. The beach areas to the east of us now seem to be getting impacted. Large mats of tar came ashore in the Gulf Shores area this morning. While we've seen nothing of this quantity on Dauphin Island...so far, at least, we hope that Gulf Shores can get this cleaned up as quickly as possible, but as of 2PM this afternoon Gulf Shores officials were still waiting for clean-up crews to arrive. There are also reports of oil coming ashore at Pensacola Beach, with the Destin area now in the projected impact zone possibly tomorrow. All of us on the coast just wish that this would somehow magically go away, but it's beginning to look like this something that the entire Gulf Coast will have to deal with, at least until the well can be capped. BP did make at least some progress today with the "top hat" containment device, with some oil being siphoned to a surface ship. I will post a further update tonight or in the morning.

June 3

Yesterday the tarballs were far less numerous on the island...the average size being smaller than a dime. The oil is said to be approaching the Gulf Shores, AL and Pensacola Beach, FL areas. Swimming advisory is still in place on the island. Fishing is still off limits in all of Alabama's gulf waters. Weather patterns have most of the oil trending toward the east so maybe these advisories and closures can be lifted soon.

BP's continues efforts to contain the spill...their latest grand plan is to cover the failed blowout protector (BOP) with a containment system called a lower marine riser package (LMRP) which, if successful, will siphon the oil from the top of the BOP to awaiting surface ships. BP hopes this will capture much of the oil. We shall see.

Commercial fishermen rallied to block off the Bayou La Batre Channel in an effort to protest BP's contract hiring process.

Dauphin Island Swimmers Ignore Swim Advisory

View Live Video feeds of containment operations

June 1

Tarballs - Oil reaches Dauphin Island - from Mobile Press Register

Oil has been identified on a portion of Dauphin Island beaches and in waters immediately offshore. The tar balls were more prevalent along the Island's public beach adjacent to the fishing pier. The west end beach had only scattered tar balls, from rice grain to the size of a quarterThe Alabama Department of Marine Resources reports that state waters are now closed to fishing on the Gulf side of Dauphin Island from Ft. Gaines to the AL/MS line. This emergency closure prohibits all commercial and recreational fishing along and off of the beaches of Dauphin and Sand Island.

The Alabama Department of Public Health is discouraging swimming along the Dauphin Island Beaches. A swimming advisory is in effect for the area. Donald Williamson, director of the state Department of Public Health, said patches of oil washed up on Dauphin Island's east end, prompting officials to close state waters to fishing from the east end of Dauphin Island to the Mississippi state line. Warnings were also posted urging beachgoers to stay out of the water. Waters are being monitored for hydrocarbons daily and the swimming advisory will be lifted when conditions improve. Hopefullyu soon.

"It's weathered oil. I don't sense that this is the beginning of a tide of oil but we are going to have to monitor it to see exactly how much more comes in," Williamson said of the oil sighted on the island.

Williamson said the state was advising swimmers to avoid the waters of the Gulf of Mexico on the western side of Mobile Bay but had not banned swimming. He said no oil had been reported on the east side of Mobile Bay, where Gulf Shores and Orange Beach are summertime tourist havens.

Fishing is closed in Federal waters south of Mobile County and has been extended eastward in the waters south of Baldwin County. The line extends from areas due south of Gulf State Park Pier west to Louisiana. All fishing, including catch and release fishing, is prohibited in the closed area.
Hundreds of tar balls are washing ashore from Sand Island to Dauphin Island’s West End. Residents report tar balls along the beach at the high tide line, as well as numerous globs suspended in the water.
Earlier Tuesday, safety inspectors headed to Sand Island after more than 100 tar balls washed to the surface.

Photo Gallery of tarballs - Mobile Press Register

Report from CNN

Reports of tar balls have also been confirmed on beaches off Fort Morgan Road in Gulf Shores.
According to the officials with the Unified Command Center in Mobile, the tar balls were collected off Fort Morgan Road and Mobile Street Sunday afternoon. They do not know at this time how many were collected, but say that infomation will become available after testing.

All federal waters of Alabama and Mississippi are also closed to all fishing.

May 24

The Island's beaches remain oil free and it was a beautiful day at the beach (see 5-20-10 photo gallery - link at left)!

The water today was just about as pretty as it gets.

Work continues on the protective sand barrier on the west end. A double barrier is being built along Bienville Blvd. All Gulf side driveways will remain open, and will only be closed off if oil should reach the gulf shoreline.

To our valued guests,

We are sure you have heard the news of the BP/Transocean oil well disaster which occured in waters 95 miles south of Dauphin Island on April 20, 2010. The accident involved the Deepwater Horizon drilling platform approximately 50 miles southeast of Venice, La. An explosion and subsequent fire damaged the rig, which capsized and sank on April 22, 2010, after burning for hours. Eleven people lost their lives in the accident. The rig is owned by Transocean and is under contract to British Petroleum (BP), who owns the well.

We pledge to keep our guests accurately informed about this accident, and we ask that our guests study the situation carefully. Check this page regularly for updates. Call or email us if you need more information about the oil spill situation.

As of today, no oil has come ashore on any shoreline in Alabama, nor has any oil or oil sheen been reported within Alabama's inshore or offshore waters. The oil slick, as of 5/6/10, is located about 60 miles south ofthe Island at its closest point to our shoreline. Offshore ocean current trends seem to be keeping the slick offshore of us. For the last several days, the weather has been cooperative for the offshore clean-up effort, and control burns and chemical disperssants are being applied at the site of the destroyed oil rig. A large containment dome structure, designed to be placed over the damaged wellhead is now at the scene of the accident. This device acts as a large vacuum cleaner. Oil will be collected within the containment structure and will be pumped to a large ship on the surface for containment and processing. This system will hopefully be in place and operating by Monday, May 10th...hopefully sooner.

So...right now we're preparing for the worst and hoping for the best! Again, not a sign of any oil so far, and we certainly hope that the fragile environment of Dauphin Island can avoid being impacted. We cautiously have our fingers crossed! Many of the national media reports over the last several days have implied that not only Dauphin Island, but Gulf Shores/Orange Beach and the Florida Panhandle...even locations as far removed as Key West, are basically going to be devastated by this oil spill. It is certainly true that the spill is an event of national significance, but we feel that it is entirely too soon to automatically assume the worst.

Thanks!
Dauphin Island Real Estate, Inc.

USEFUL WEBSITES AND INFORMATION

Deepwater Horizon website
www.deepwaterhorizonresponse.com –Latest info about the oil spill, including the initial incident, clean-up efforts, measures being taken to stop the leak, projected trajectory.

Informative website from Univ. of South Florida with Animated spill trajectory prediction maps using locational floaters - GPS info from floaters transmitted to satellite University of South Florida.
http://ocg6.marine.usf.edu/~liu/Drif...test_rtofs.htm

NOAA
http://deepwaterhorizon.noaa.gov
for the latest info from U. S. Government sources. NOAA's official trajectory maps are located at bottom of page - PDF Format

NOAA’s National Weather Service has created a special forecast for our
area which you can access here:
http://www.srh.noaa.gov/mob/?n=oilspillsupportpage

Town of Dauphin Island official website with lots of information.

Volunteer for clean up (should the need arise)
Call 251-431-6409 or e-mail mbnep@mobilebaynep.com

Call 1-800-440-0858 – to report oil related damage.

Call 1-866-557-1401 – to report oiled wildlife.

Call 1-866-448-5816 – to report oiled shoreline or request volunteer information.