Oil seeps from the ground from a hole dug on a Knight Island beach in Alaska's Prince William Sound on Wednesday, July 16, 2010. Alaska still hasn't recovered from the Exxon Valdez disaster 21 years later. An estimated 21,000 gallons of spilled oil remains in Prince William Sound two decades after the initial devastation.

I spent four days in Alaska covering the aftermath of the Exxon Valdez oil spill 21 years later for the New York Daily News. It was an adventure of an assignment and an eye opening experience.

It was my first time in Alaska as well as my first time flying out of state for a big assignment like this. Meeting fishermen whose lives were ruined by the oil spill made me think of the fishermen in the Gulf who have no idea what’s in store for them in the years to come.

Myself and NY Daily News west coast bureau chief Nancy Dillon flew out on a sea plane to Knight Island in Alaska’s Prince William Sound, where oil seeped out from holes dug in the sand.

Prince William Sound is one of the most beautiful places that I’ve ever seen with my own eyes. Seeing how man can so easily destroy something so beautiful was really sad.

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