Dramatic photos of Arkansas oil spill capture 5,000 barrel's worth of destruction flowing between homes

Newly released photos taken after roughly 5,000 barrels of oil poured through an Arkansas subdivision last week capture the horrific environmental destruction and its clean-up efforts.


Mayflower's streets are seen turned into toxic black rivers with some slick pools circling around sewer holes among the dozens of photos published by the Environmental Protection Agency this week.


Behind them, backyards are seen soaked black between trees and children's toys. Incredibly in one photo, rippling waves are seen moving out from one yard fitted with a basketball hoop near its driveway.

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Flooding: Oil pours through a front yard before running down the streets of Mayflower, Arkansas after an ExxonMobil pipeline carrying crude ruptured last week




Trail of destruction: twenty-two homes were evacuated and at least 60 homes total affected




Efforts: A dam is seen erected to stop the flow of approximately 5,000 barrels of oil that burst into the area, Exxon said on Friday


Soaked: A backyard is seen soaked in black oil collecting in deep pools throughout the property and among children's toys

The waves, appearing several inches deep, lead from the home's backyard where the source is said to be.

On March 29 an Exxon Mobil pipeline carrying Canadian crude oil burst, leading to the evacuation of 22 homes. At least 60 homes total are said to be affected.

'About 600 people are responding to the incident in addition to federal, state and local responders,' Exxon said in a statement reporting their progress on Friday.

'Affected wildlife includes ducks, turtles, a beaver and a muskrat. Fourteen dead ducks, one dead nutria and two dead turtles have been recovered. Fish in Lake Conway have not been affected,' they state.




Exxon pipeline breaks in Arkansas spiling into neighborhoods




Before: Rippling waves of oil are seen moving out from this flooded yard fitted with a basketball hoop near its driveway



During: The cleanup continues after an ExxonMobil pipeline carrying crude from Alberta's tar sands ruptured in Mayflower, Ark., last week.


After: The two homes where the oil was seen previously pouring out from its backyard are seen nearly all cleaned up

Among photos of the aftermath, however, are also pictures of the workers seen attempting to slow the flow with various barriers in the streets, yards, and canals and lakes.


Another photo shows a man in a jumpsuit pumping the oil at a rupture location.


Eighteen vacuum trucks and 59 storage tanks are among those on site, according to Exxon.


On Friday two women who live near the pipeline filed a federal lawsuit against the company seeking more than $5 million in damages.

The women are seeking money to make up for 'a permanent diminishment in property value,' according to the complaint. Their complaint says the women are bringing their lawsuit on their own behalf and for other people who live near the pipeline.


Covered: A branch taken from a canal is lifted out of the water, showing it seeped in oil



Wildlife: Fourteen dead ducks, one dead nutria and two dead turtles were recovered from the scene though fish in Lake Conway were said to have not been affected



Running: A canal is seen carrying some of the slick oil across its surface as Exxon says roughly 600 people, in addition to federal, state and local responders, worked to treat it







One of the women's lawyers, Phillip Duncan, wouldn't spell out exactly how much money they're looking for, but their lawsuit stated the multi-million dollar sum in damages for property owners.


The lawsuit said the part of the pipeline that ruptured was 'in an unsafe, defective and deficient condition presenting an immediate environmental harm' on March 29.


'The Pegasus Pipeline running throughout the state of Arkansas is most likely to be similarly situated and maintained ...' Greene and Chunn's lawyers wrote in the complaint.

An Exxon spokesman declined to comment on the lawsuit, but a spokeswoman has previously said its inspections were up-to-date.


Target site: : A neighborhood cul-du-sac identified as being the closest to the rupture is seen during cleanup

The part of the pipeline that ruptured was inspected in 2010 and again in February, according to a corrective action order that federal pipeline safety officials issued Tuesday.


The Pegasus pipeline, which runs from Patoka, Ill., to the Texas Gulf Coast, was originally built in 1947 and 1948, according to federal pipeline safety officials. It is currently out of service.


For that to change, ExxonMobil would need written approval from a federal pipeline safety official, according to the order from the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration.


The cause of the spill is still under investigation.