Gustav Affecting More Than Just Oil Drillers

New Orleans, LA (AHN) - Hurricane Gustav will potentially lead to large problems for oil drillers in the Gulf Coast. However, casinos, sugar harvesters and the shipping industry also face large economic risks.

Over the weekend oil drilling platforms in the Gulf Coast have seen production dramatically reduced after workers were evacuated. Drops in productivity and potential earnings have hit the Gulf Coast casino industry as well. A dozen casinos were destroyed back when Hurricane Katrina blew through the region. The coastal casinos were not taking any chances this time as Gustav made landfall. Casinos from New Orleans to Biloxi, MS all shut their doors last night as millions of dollars in potential revenue on the Labor Day holiday will be lost.

The casino companies have spent more than $1.7 billion rebuilding in the region since Hurricane Katrina, according to the Gulf Coast Business Council.

As for sugar harvesters, there are 12 processing mills located in southern Louisiana that service 600 growers. According to the American Sugar Cane League, the sugar business in Louisiana produces roughly fourteen tons of sugar cane with an economic impact of $1.7 billion. There are 450,000 acres of sugar cane crops in Louisiana that could be flooded by Gustav, dramatically affecting the industry.

The Gulf Coast shipping companies were affected by the storm before it even made landfall as many shippers diverted cargo away from the storm earlier in the weekend. The last vessel to leave the New Orleans Port was on Saturday night as the coast guard shut down the Mississippi river on Sunday.