BP's well to stay corked during storm.. crews could be evacuated..

ON THE GULF OF MEXICO – The temporary cap on BP's ruptured oil well will stay closed even if ships evacuate the Gulf of Mexico during a tropical storm, the federal government's spill chief said Thursday.

Growing confidence in the mechanical plug's security convinced scientists it was safe to leave it unmonitored for a few days, Retired Coast Guard Adm. Thad Allen said. He said they'll decide Thursday evening whether dozens of ships in the area will leave.

"While this is not a hurricane, it's a storm that will have probably some significant impacts, so we're taking appropriate cautions," Allen said.

Forecasters at the U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami say the storm system already has caused flooding in Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic and Haiti. It could become Tropical Storm Bonnie later Thursday and reach the Gulf of Mexico by Saturday.

If work crews are evacuated, it could be two weeks before they can resume the effort to kill the well. That would upset BP's timetable, which called for finishing the relief tunnel by the end of July and plugging the blown-out well by early August.

more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100722/ap_on_bi_ge/us_gulf_oil_spill

Sounds like "static kill" and the relief well drilling are also on hold until the storm passes. Ugh.