Feds offer loans to those harmed by California oil spill

HUNTINGTON BEACH, Calif. (AP) — The federal government will offer disaster loans to businesses harmed by an oil spill that shut down Southern California shorelines earlier this month. The U.S. Small Business Administration on Wednesday approved disaster assistance in the form of low-interest loans for Orange County, where the spill took place, along with nearby Los Angeles, Riverside, San Bernardino and San Diego counties. A broken pipeline leaked about 25,000 gallons of crude oil off of Huntington Beach, closing beaches and fisheries for more than a week and harming the local economy. The cause of the spill is under investigation, but authorities say a ship’s anchor may have struck the pipe.