Wedding industry awash in worry over BP Oil spill

The BP Oil spill has impacted a way of life for the residents of the Gulf Coast for sixty-nine days. Fisherman can’t operate due to safety concerns, hotels aren’t getting their usual flow of reservations, and wedding related businesses are panicking.

Weddings are big business in the US and result in over $80 billion dollars a year for the industry. Just think of all of the people that you need to pull off a wedding like a photographer, caterer, DJ, seamstress, chair rental company, hairstylist, tuxedo rental, and even hotel rooms. On average, a typical American wedding costs about $20,000.

Beach weddings have become increasingly popular over the past few years with couples getting hitched in spots like Traverse City in Michigan and Alabama’s Orange Beach. The Gulf Coast’s white beaches and warm weather are a big draw for many like Florida’s Santa Rosa Island. Because the area is home to so many weddings, it nabbed the nickname “the Las Vegas of beach weddings.”

With the ongoing coverage of the BP Oil spill, many couples are justifiably upset. They’ve spent months or even years planning their perfect day and now fear the silhouette of an oil spill or tar balls will pop up in their wedding pictures. In fact, 65 percent of the weddings that were scheduled to take place this summer on Santa Rosa Island have been cancelled.

Wedding planner Darrin Land has lost $12,000 since the Deepwater Horizon erupted back in April. He said the situation “is worse than a hurricane because we don't know what is going to happen."

Some women are unleashing their inner Bridezilla over the BP Oil situation, but other brides-to-be are looking at the situation with a better perspective. Alabama resident Casey Boswell said, “We know that this oil spill is much bigger than our wedding. We want the defenseless sea life to be spared and have our fellow Alabama [residents] get the peace they justly deserve.”