By the CNN Wire Staff
(CNN) — Divers found the body of a man believed to be one of two crew members missing after an oil platform blast in the Gulf of Mexico, the platform’s manager said.
The two crew members went missing Friday after an explosion triggered a fire and injured at least 11 people.
Black Elk Energy President and CEO John Hoffman said the body was discovered Saturday night under the platform, on the sea floor.
The body has not been identified, Hoffman told reporters.
“We’re working in coordination with the U.S. Coast Guard so we can respectfully and most efficiently recover the body and get that body to shore,” Hoffman said.
The explosion occurred about 20 miles off the coast of Grand Isle, Louisiana, on a platform used for production, not drilling. Black Elk Energy, a Houston-based firm, was in charge of the platform.
About 28 gallons of fuel spilled into the region, Coast Guard Response Division Chief Ed Cubanski said. An oil sheen reportedly stretched for about a half-mile near the platform.
The injured were airlifted to area hospitals, and nine other crew members were evacuated, according to the Coast Guard.
Four of the injured suffered major burns and were being treated Saturday at Baton Rouge General Medical Center in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
Of the four, two were in critical condition, said Jeffrey Littleton, a burn surgeon and chief of surgery. The other two were in serious but stable condition, he said.
The cause of the blast remains under investigation.
CNN’s AnneClaire Stapleton contributed to this report.
™ & © 2012 Cable News Network, Inc., a Time Warner Company. All rights reserved.
