Oil was spewing freely into the Gulf of Mexico as BP crews claimed progress yesterday in the first stages of replacing a leaky cap with a new containment system they hope will finally catch all the crude from the busted well.

Robotic submarines working a mile underwater removed a leaking cap from the gushing Gulf oil well, starting a painful trade-off in which more crude will flow into the sea for at least two days until a new seal can be mounted to capture all of it.