The Coast Guard responded to a "loss of well control" in the Gulf of Mexico on Tuesday, The Times-Picayune reports.
The natural gas and crude oil platform is owned by Energy Resources Technology (ERT), which was acquired by Talos Energy in February.
It is located about 74 miles southwest of Port Fourchon, Louisiana.
In an emailed statement to gCaptain, the U.S. Coast Guard said that "natural gas is flowing from the well and there is a rainbow sheen visible on the surface estimated to be more than four miles wide by three quarters of a mile long.”
The platform is mostly releasing natural gas, and unlike the BP oil well disaster, the platform is not a deepwater rig. According to FuelFix, the platform, located in Ship Shoal Block 225 platform 2B has been out of commission for 15 years, and the crew was in the process of permanently decommissioning it on Monday when the leak started.
Because of the age of the site, first tapped in the 1970s, the discharge is likely leaking slowly and at a low pressure.
"In an abundance of caution, we decided to evacuate the platform and mobilize our spill response team,"Talos Energy president Timothy Duncan told FuelFix. "We are focused on the safety of our personnel while taking all appropriate measures to limit any environmental impact."
Duncan speculated that the age of the tubing may have contributed to the incident.
All employees were evacuated safely and efforts to plug the well continue. The two other wells on the platform have been plugged.
Check back for updates to this story.