Individual BP claims in wake of oil spill range from $23,000 to $5

DECEMBER 14, 2010

Wake up and good morning. In the wake of the BP gulf oil spill, Pensacola's University of West Florida Haas Center Director, Dr. Rick Harper, offers some interesting numbers on the economic impact. The deadline for emergency claims passed in November with these bulk results from the Panhandle counties:

* Bay County residents received $174 million.

* Okaloosa County residents claimed $203 million.

* Walton County residents received $102 million.

* Gulf County residents got $12 million.

* And Franklin residents were given $17 million.

As reported by Panama City's WJHS TV news (story here), Harper said the average Bay County employee received around $10,000, Gulf workers got around $23,000, Franklin’s claimants received about $15,000 and Okaloosa County and Walton workers received around $13,000.

Even Central Florida got a tiny slice of the claims. Harper said Orange County, home of Disney World and far from the Gulf spill, received "about $5 per job in tourism." Of course, Orange County has a lot of jobs related to tourism.

Hillsborough, Harper said, fared a bit better, getting $75 per tourism job.

AP photo of BP oil rig fire.

-- Robert Trigaux, Times Business Columnist

Posted by Robert Trigaux at 6:42:30 am on December 14, 2010 in

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