No platforms or rigs have been evacuated in the Gulf of America, but operators have shut in an estimated 9.24% of the region's oil production and 3.36% of its natural gas production ahead of the storm, the Marine Minerals Administration said. The figures reflect operator reports as of 11:30 a.m. CDT Tuesday, Oct. 6.
The agency, formed July 10, 2026 when the Department of the Interior merged the former offshore energy and safety bureaus, is monitoring operators across the Gulf's offshore upstream oil and gas activity as they evacuate platforms and rigs in response to the storm. It will keep working with operators and other state and federal agencies until the storm is no longer a threat and operations return to normal.
No platforms or rigs have moved
None of the Gulf's 371 manned production platforms had been evacuated as of the Tuesday count. Production platforms stay in one location for the life of a project, unlike drilling rigs, which move between sites.
The Gulf also has 10 non-dynamically positioned rigs, a category covering jack-up rigs, platform rigs, submersibles and moored semisubmersibles, and none of those had been evacuated either. None of the 17 dynamically positioned rigs in the Gulf had moved off location. Dynamically positioned rigs hold position with thrusters and propellers rather than mooring to the seafloor, so they can move out of the storm's path quickly; personnel stay aboard and return once it clears.
How the shut-ins work
Evacuating personnel trigger a shut-in procedure, often from a remote location, that closes safety valves below the ocean floor to stop any release of oil or gas from wells. Shutting in production this way is standard industry practice for safety and environmental protection.
The 9.24% oil figure works out to 185,120 barrels per day, and the 3.36% gas figure works out to 72 million cubic feet per day. Both come from operators' daily reports of what they expected to produce that day, and the agency checks the numbers against historical production data to confirm they follow a logical pattern.
| Metric | Total | Percent of Gulf |
|---|---|---|
| Platforms evacuated | 0 | 0% |
| Rigs evacuated | 0 | 0% |
| DP rigs moved off location | 0 | 0% |
| Oil shut-in (BOPD) | 185,120 | 9.24% |
| Gas shut-in (MMCFD) | 72 | 3.36% |
The count reflects reports from one company as of Tuesday morning. The Marine Minerals Administration said it will update the evacuation and shut-in figures at 1 p.m. CDT each day as needed. Once the storm passes, operators will inspect facilities, and undamaged ones are expected back in production immediately after standard checks; facilities that sustain damage may take longer to restart.
