While the nation focuses on the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, weather experts warn there’s a greater threat headed for the Gulf — a hurricane season that’s expected to be more active than normal.

The “top killing” began Wednesday afternoon — a procedure BP hopes will finally plug the open well that has leaked at least 7 million gallons of oil into the Gulf of Mexico for more than a month. Mud and cement are being pumped into the well to stop the flow of oil and possibly seal the leak.

The oil spill has affected an estimated 13,000 commercial licensed fishermen in Louisiana, not including deckhands and crew, according to the Louisiana State Department of Wildlife and Fisheries. An estimated one-third of those fishermen are immigrants from Southeast Asia. Many speak little or no English, and face the third major upheaval of their lives.

After contentious debate between the Environmental Protection Agency and BP regarding its use of a particular dispersant in the Gulf of Mexico, BP has agreed to lessen the amount it is using to help clean up the massive oil spill. BP will cut back its use of the dispersant Corexit, which it has been spraying in the Gulf, by 50 to 75 percent.

Donald Esteen, 37, and his son Vladimir, 6, stood at the corner of Miro and St. Bernard Streets, slurping on cherry-red snowballs, as they watched the Zulu Clubs’ parade creep by on a humid Sunday afternoon.