Cause of Michigan oil spill found

Oily water flow on the Kalamazoo River downstream from an oil spill outside Marshall, Michigan, the United States, July 31, 2010. A 30 inch (76.2 cm) petroleum pipeline operated by Enbridge Energy of Canada (Calgary, Alberta) ruptured on July 26, spilling an estimated 1 million gallons (3.7 million liters) of raw crude oil into a tributary that feeds the Kalamazoo River near Marshall Township, Michigan. The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Enbridge are working to contain the spill and cleanup the damage to local water and wildlife. Photo: Xinhua

Officials say they have located the pipeline break that caused hundreds of thousands of gallons of oil to spew into a major river in the southern part of the US state of Michigan, Detroit News reported on Saturday.

An official with the Canadian company which owns the pipeline that leaked oil into the Kalamazoo River confirmed the break's discovery during a news conference on Saturday afternoon in Marshall.

Enbridge Executive Vice President Steve Wuori said: "It is highly unlikely there is any other break in the pipe" other than the one that was exposed.

The Calgary, Alberta-based Enbridge Inc. said 820,000 gallons of oil leaked beginning Monday. The US Environmental Protection Agency put the total at more than 1 million gallons.

Wuori said no more oil was leaking from the exposed pipe, and the spill has been contained.

Congressman Mark Schauer, D-Michigan, announced on Saturday that the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee will be launching a formal investigation into the oil spill. After discussing the leak with subcommittee leaders on Friday, Chairwoman Corrine Brown, D-Florida., and Vice Chairman Tim Walz, D-Minnisota., agreed to conduct hearings when Congress returns in September.