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BP Sets Up a Floating Hotel Complex for the Oil Spill Containment Crews

June 4, 2010 at 4:06 PM | by | Comments (0)

We're kind of obligated to give you another update on the BP oil disaster, which as of last night has probably reached Florida, but it's Friday and we hate sending you into the weekend on a down note. Let's focus on the quirky for a moment then, with this story about the weird floating hotel complex that BP has set up for their 500-plus member containment crews. Each room is a combination shipping freight/military barracks-style dorm, and the whole thing sounds just slightly more comfortable than your worst Amsterdam hostel. But they're dubbed "flotels," so we're kind of intrigued.

Flotels are nothing new to the oil industry, and they're often set up in harbor areas or alongside offshore oil rigs. Nor, per our sister site HotelChatter, are floating hotels totally unheard of. But the scale of the current operation goes a little bit beyond what you normally see, and you can check out the minimalist decor here.

This is much closer to the kind of mass temporary housing that you hear about when people come back from Habitat for Humanity Spring Breaks. The other option would be to bring all the workers into Louisiana's Port Fourchon every morning, which would take them across the bayou, which isn't an option at all. We doubt there are even enough motels in the area to sustain that operation.

Each 40-foot long crate has 12 bunks, and each set of 4 bunks has its own bathroom. They're really not much more than shipping containers with dormitory-style beds and a few outhouses, but each barge does come equipped with 10 washers, 10 driers, and a kitchen (meals are still thankfully being served in a big tent on shore; the kitchens are just for convenience). Every worker has 30 square feet of personal space, which apparently meets Coast Guard specifications but seems a little bit small on us.

Maybe if there was free wi-fi or something...

[Photo: Norwegian Petroleum Museum / Wiki Commons]

Related Stories:
· 'Flotels' await oil spill cleanup workers on Gulf [AP]
· Florida Travel [Jaunted]
· Louisiana Travel [Jaunted]

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