Five Months, Eight Days: A Timeline of the BP Oil Spill Share Share this on Facebook (Opens in a new window) Share this on Twitter (Opens in a new window) Share this via Email Ships assist in clean up and containment near the source of the BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill July 27, 2010 in the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Louisiana. ( Chris Graythen / Getty ) Produced by PRI and WNYC