Mexico oil spill: US prepares for worst
May 31st, 2010 - 10:20 am ICT by IANS
Washington, May 31 (DPA) The US government is preparing for a months-long disaster in the Gulf of Mexico after the latest attempt by oil giant BP to plug a gushing well were declared a failure.
“What we’re doing is we’re going to hope for the best and prepare for the worst,” Carol Browner, an Obama energy advisor, told the CBS television programme Face the Nation Sunday. “The worst is that we have oil leaking until August, until these relief wells are done. And we will be prepared for the worst”.
Efforts by BP to plug the oil well with a so-called top-kill operation were declared a failure Saturday and the oil company said it would try another approach - again trying to capture the oil and siphon it to the surface.
In a new strategy, BP will first use robots to cut off the leaking riser pipe that leads out of the damaged well head to create an even surface before lowering a dome to capture the oil.
BP managing director Bob Dudley said there was “more probability of success with this than the top-kill”, while noting the risks and challenges of operating deep below sea level remain.
BP had received previous warnings that the Deepwater Horizon oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico had serious safety problems, the New York Times reported Sunday, citing internal BP documents.
Those problems included difficulties with the blowout preventer and well casing -elements believed to be to blame for the disaster that saw the rig explode and sink April 20 in the Gulf of Mexico, starting a catastrophic oil spill.
The paper said there were reports of these problems as early as last June.
One BP engineer cited in the documents called a blowout a “worst-case scenario,” but added an additional warning: “I have seen it happen so know it can occur”.
The explosion killed 11 people and unleashed the worst marine spill in US history, which has led BP’s share price to slide on fears of a multi-billion dollar cleanup bill and President Barack Obama’s authority to come into question over his government’s response to the crisis.
Local government and industry officials on the Gulf Coast have grown increasingly alarmed as they watch oil slather more than 160 km of the Louisiana coastline and invade 12 hectares of fragile marshlands.
- Gulf of Mexico oil leak described as 'worst US environment disaster' - May 31, 2010
- BP's top kill failed to seal oil gusher - May 30, 2010
- BP calls for changes in oil exploration methods - Jun 04, 2010
- BP's 'cost-cutting decisions' blamed for 'avoidable' Gulf of Mexico oil spill - Jan 06, 2011
- White House says clean-up resources in the Gulf will be tripled - May 31, 2010
- US allows BP to drill new Gulf deepwater wells - Oct 22, 2011
- BP sues Cameron, Deepwater Horizon owner Transocean over Gulf of Mexico oil spill - Apr 21, 2011
- BP places 'top cap' over leak - Jun 06, 2010
- US oil spill spreads to Mississippi, Alabama - Jun 02, 2010
- Investigation report blames failure of 'blowout preventer' for Gulf of Mexico oil spill - Mar 24, 2011
- US blames BP's poor decisions for Gulf oil spill - Sep 15, 2011
- US oil spill could reach Louisiana shore by Friday - Apr 29, 2010
- Eight failures that led to Gulf oil spill - Sep 09, 2010
- BP must ensure stopping of oil spill - Aug 14, 2010
- US terms reports of BP resuming Gulf of Mexico drilling as 'misconception' - Apr 05, 2011
Tags: barack obama, blowout preventer, carol browner, cbs television, director bob, energy advisor, even surface, face the nation, gulf of mexico, horizon oil, mexico oil, new york times, oil giant bp, oil rig, oil spill, relief wells, riser pipe, safety problems, well head, worst case scenario