The festival's unusual title reflects two of the region's main industries, both affected by the disastrous spill from BP's busted Macondo well.

But with US officials saying the capped and sealed well no longer poses a threat, an estimated 150,000 people turned out to celebrate the region's seafood and watch the blessing of the local fleet of boats.

Local shrimp has remained available in Morgan City despite the oil spill, which forced less fortunate Gulf coast communities to look elsewhere for their crustaceans as shrimping grounds were closed for fear of contamination.

A less-than-obvious pairing for outsiders, the shrimping and oil industries are key employers here and celebrating both industries makes sense for locals.

"It's a tradition," said theater worker Randi Falcon, who returned to her childhood home in Morgan City for the festival this year from Mississippi.

"It's something that brings us closer together, and if anything the oil has brought us even closer."

BP contributed 5,000 dollars to the festival this year, a fraction of the cost of the event, said festival president, Nathalie Weber, 1968's Shrimp and Petroleum Queen.

BP did not contribute last year, she said, but this year, the company's logo was discreetly posted on a chain fence next to the children's storytelling area.

"I'm happy they're sponsoring us," said Weber. "I'm not mad with them. It was an accident."

Laurie Shannon is the fourth generation in her family to run Shannon's Hardware store on Front Street here. It has supplied both the oil and shrimp industries alike since 1876.

"Well, you hate to admit it, but business is up," she said. "Because we supply a lot of the clean-up boats. The question now is when is the (deepsea oil drilling) moratorium going to end, because we'd like to see our regular business return."

Others were less optimistic. Welder Jimmy Harris lost his job at a local shipbuilding company in the recession and said the oil disaster is unlikely to improve his prospects of finding work.

"I've got three kids and my unemployment benefits just ran out," he said. "But at least the festival is a nice distraction."

Harris and his friend, roofer Drew Singleton, planned to enjoy the music, some fried shrimp on a stick and boudin balls, and perhaps a couple of Hurricane Daiquiris made by the local Kiwanis club.

But the celebrations were only temporary for Harris. After Monday's Labor Day holiday, he returns to his search for work.

earlier related report
Focus of Gulf oil disaster shifts to finding the culprit
New Orleans, Louisiana (AFP) Sept 5, 2010 - With a key piece of evidence raised from the depths of the Gulf of Mexico and BP's Macondo well ruled a threat no longer, the focus shifts to what went wrong and who is to blame.

Had it functioned properly, the blowout preventer would have sealed off the well after the explosion that ripped through it in April and the biggest maritime oil spill in history would never have happened.

The giant safety valve, which is being transferred to a NASA facility near New Orleans after being raised from the ocean on Saturday, could incriminate BP or one of the other firms involved in drilling the well.

The valve will stay under Justice Department custody, but other entities, including a US government-appointed investigative panel and congressional committees, are likely to seek access to examine it.

An assessment on Saturday from the US official overseeing the spill response that the Macondo well "does not constitute a threat" anymore will bring relief to a region that watched with despair and frustration as an estimated 4.9 million barrels of crude leaked into the ocean.

The leak began with an April 20 explosion that tore through the BP-leased Deepwater Horizon rig, killing 11 workers. The platform sank two days later, and by April 24, the Coast Guard confirmed crude was leaking into the sea.

The extent of the disaster would not be understood for months, when estimates of the leak's size were finally raised from initial figures of 1,000-5,000 barrels a day to between 35,000 and 60,000 barrels.

The flow rate is among the aspects of the disaster now being examined in public hearings, court cases, congressional inquiries and the Justice Department's criminal probe.

BP is a prime target for the investigations, which are also examining the roles of other firms, including Halliburton, which cemented the well; Transocean, which leased the rig to BP; and Cameron International, which supplied the blowout preventer.

A joint investigation board appointed by the US Homeland Security and Interior Departments is expected to hold a fifth public hearing October 4-8 examining the device and the equipment used to drill the well.

The panel is to produce a final report in January 2011. It cannot charge individuals or firms, but can refer any allegations of criminal conduct to the Justice Department.

Attorney General Eric Holder said the department's inquiry would examine "a wide range of things from false statements to the way certain entities have conducted themselves."

It will also look into potential violations of multiple environmental regulations, including the Clean Water Act and the Migratory Bird Treaty Act.

The spill washed up in all five Gulf states -- Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida. Louisiana was particularly hard-hit, with thick crude clogging its fragile wetland ecosystems.

It has prompted a flood of lawsuits, including from environmental groups, the state of Alabama and hundreds of individuals who suffered financial losses.

Some 77 cases have been consolidated for consideration by a judge in Louisiana, and over 200 more could be added.

The firms involved in the spill also face congressional scrutiny, with an array of Senate and House of Representatives committees examining the disaster.

At the forefront of their efforts is Representative Ed Markey, who has pushed BP to accept government estimates of the amount of oil that leaked from the well each day.

Those estimates will help determine how large a fine BP will pay over the spill, with Markey saying they could be assessed between 1,100 to 4,300 dollars per barrel spilled.

BP meanwhile contributed 5,000 dollars for a sponsorship slot at the annual Shrimp and Petroleum Festival in Morgan City, Louisiana, where an estimated 150,000 people came to eat fried local seafood and listen to music on the US holiday weekend.

"It's a tradition," said theater worker Randi Falcon who attended the festival. "It's something that brings us closer together, and if anything the oil has brought us even closer."

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