Officials knew of California oil spill 12 hours before cleanup began

Authorities face questions over how much damage could have been prevented after 126,000 gallons of crude seeped into ocean

More than 12 hours passed after officials were notified of a sheen on the water off the coast of southern California before a response to the Huntington Beach oil spill began, records show. Questions are now arising over why the response took so long and how that might have intensified the ecological disaster taking form on the Orange county coastline.

The US Coast Guard said in a statement on Tuesday that the initial reports of a spill weren't enough to warrant sending out boats to look for a leak.