BP hopes to seal well as tide turns in battle against oil

BP PUMPED cement into its blown-out oil well in the Gulf of Mexico yesterday, hoping to start sealing it for good a day after it forced a slow torrent of heavy mud down the broken wellhead and pushed the crude back to its underground source.

This next step in the so-called “static kill” was another bright spot as the tide appeared to be turning in the months-long battle to contain the oil, with a federal report this week indicating that only about a quarter of the spilled crude remains in the Gulf and is degrading quickly.

Even so, Joey Yerkes, a 43-year-old fisherman in Destin, Florida, said he and other boaters, swimmers and scuba divers continue to find oil and tar balls in areas that have been declared clear.