Did a Shell-operated deep water oil platform break loose in the Gulf of Mexico due to Hurricane Ida?
The claim was shared widely on social media but the U.S. Coast Guard conducted a flyover of the Gulf of Mexico on Sunday that revealed no oil platforms had broken loose, according to an agency statement.
On Monday, Shell conducted its own flyover and announced on its website that its oil platforms, known as Mars, Olympus and Ursa, “are all intact and on location.”
The false claim stemmed from a Facebook post from Mississippi Weather Network, an account that shares weather information based on tips from the public. In an email to the AP, the network said it had heard from a source that an oil platform had broken loose but “issued a retraction as quickly as possible” after it could not be confirmed.
Social media users, however, continued to share screenshots of the original post.