Oil spill response expo at the Wharf

GULF SHORES, Alabama (WALA) - If you have any questions regarding the oil spill response, you can get your questions answered over the next couple of days in Orange Beach.

Thursday afternoon until 7:00 p.m., and Friday from 8:00 a.m. until 11:00 a.m., BP promises you'll get the answers you're looking for at an Oil Response Expo being held at the Wharf in Orange Beach.

"We have about 20 different agencies under the Unified Command and they have come out and have different booths set up and information and so residents can come out and ask questions and speak one on one with the agencies and representatives involved in the response," said Ashley Babb, BP.

One question a lot of people are asking is what makes a claim legitimate?

"How are you impacted, and is it in proximity, is it the oil on the beach? Hotel rooms? All those factors, we look at every one of those," said John Goforth, Claims Operations Manager for BP.

Goforth said most claims that have been filed are legitimate.

"The largest percentage of the people we deal with, we've paid over $235 million to date, over $54 million in Alabama. We have over 27,000 claims in Alabama to date," explained Goforth.

Goforth said it is not too late to file a claim .

"We're doing the best we can to make sure the people get their claims processed and paid as expeditiously as possible," said Goforth.

If you have any other questions about claims, or anything else having to do with the oil spill response, BP says any question is guaranteed to get an answer.

Participating Agencies:

• U.S. Coast Guard

• BP Community Outreach (Baldwin County)

• Claims Division

• National Parks Service

• Alabama Marine Police/ \department of Conservation

• Waste Management

• Alabama Department of Health/Baldwin County Department of Health

• EPA

• U.S. Fish and Wildlife

• Alabama Department of Environmental Management

• Vessels of Opportunity

• Baldwin County Emergency Management Agency

• Alabama Gulf Coast Chamber of Commerce

• Baldwin County Business Support Center

• Baldwin County Operations Branch Division/Contractors

• City of Gulf Shores

• Mental Health Agencies, including Baldwin County Mental Health Association, Catholic Social Services, Gulf Shores United Methodist, Area Agency on Aging, Red Cross, and Prodisee Pantry.