(CNN) – BP's top official, who had previously said the environmental impact on the Gulf of Mexico would be modest, upgraded his assessment Friday to an "environmental catastrophe" during an interview with American Morning's John Roberts. Also Friday, engineers in the Gulf tried the "junk shot" method in an attempt to stop a massive oil leak in the Gulf of Mexico, BP's chief executive Tony Hayward said.
The procedure involved shooting debris such as shredded rubber tires, golf balls and similar objects into the blowout preventer in an attempt to clog it and stop the leak. The goal of the junk shot is to force-feed the preventer, the device that failed when the disaster unfolded, until it becomes so plugged that the oil stops flowing or slows to a relative trickle.
The company plans to resume its "top kill" method, pumping heavy mud into the leak, later Friday, he said.
President Obama is scheduled to visit Louisiana on Friday for the second time since an oil rig explosion sent a historic amount of oil gushing into the Gulf.
