Pensacola Bay

The bay, an inlet of the Gulf of Mexico, is located in Escambia County and Santa Rosa County, adjacent to the city of Pensacola, Florida, and is about 13 miles (21 km) long and 2.5 miles (4 km) wide.

[1] Pensacola Bay is formed and protected by Fairpoint Peninsula and the barrier island of Santa Rosa.

It built the Navy Yard west of the city in Warrington, starting in 1828 (this was redeveloped in the 20th century as Naval Air Station Pensacola).

Following the Deepwater Horizon oil spill (called the "Gulf oil spill"), the government and BP planned to close the entrance to Pensacola Pass with a floating barrier system in June 2010, to control tidal flow of oil entering from the Gulf of Mexico.

[2] The daily high tide was causing oil-contaminated water to enter Pensacola Bay.

Pensacola and Pensacola Bay, 1885 lithograph.
Pensacola Bay (map center) is southeast of Pensacola, Florida , by Escambia Bay .
Location of Pensacola Bay (top left) in the state of Florida.