BP's 'Systemic Failure' Endangers Gulf Cleanup Workers

McClatchy:

Federal regulators complained in a scathing internal memo about "significant deficiencies" in BP's handling of the safety of oil spill workers and asked the Coast Guard to help pressure the company to address a litany of concerns.

Read the whole story: McClatchy

Comments

[booki]

02:53 PM on 05/30/2010

i want to see our congress.......those marvelous incumbents that care so much about their constituents...
and shun the oil lobbyists.....

put the white suits on, and start sopping up some of the filthy oil.
that they OK D, in an esoteric way.........
who , knows......there might be a BP check waiting for them, at the end of the oily rainbow.

[GonzoBrawler]

10:53 AM on 05/30/2010

The ONLY thing they need to be focused of right now is getting this leak stopped, and cleaning it up SAFELY.

[had-enough]

01:19 PM on 05/30/2010

Don't forget the 11 families!!!!!! AND the marine life DEAD!

[Phreejazz]

07:42 AM on 05/30/2010

"Federal regulators... asked the Coast Guard to help pressure the company to address a litany of concerns."

THIS is what is so infuriating with the fed's response to this. Help pressure BP???

"...reveals the Obama administration's growing concerns about potential health and safety problems posed by the oil spill and its inability to force BP to respond to them." That just leaves me speechless.

Here the lame excuse that BP are the ones who know how best to handle this doesn't even work. We're talking about bonehead basics of response team safety. JFC. It's things like this that make me doubt Obama's *entire* approach to this.

[jgdesr1]

07:06 AM on 05/30/2010

What's really amazing about this whole process is WHO BP and the Government is bringing in to solve this problem - oil engineers, people with expertise on how to get oil OUT of the ground, but nary a clue on how to keep it IN the ground.

This team needs some really bright fluid dynamics physicists, people who know how fluids move, how they respond to different forces, and how to stop them from flowing. Surely MIT or CalTech should have a few laying around somewhere.

[wolfdogNM]

11:27 PM on 05/29/2010

More proof that BP does not give a darn about the enviromemnt, and that BP only wants to cap the well and retain the oil.

[MajorMalfunction]

10:24 PM on 05/29/2010

Guys in white jumpsuits and a roll of Bounty The Quicker-Picker-Upper. If that is the best technology we have to deal with oil spills then we have no business allowing any drilling.

[MajorMalfunction]

10:22 PM on 05/29/2010

"BP's systemic failure"? I thought Obama was in charge. Mr. President, what is Plan B?

[lboucher]

10:07 PM on 05/29/2010

Pretty much the end of the Gulf of Mexico and land values in those states that have shore line on the Gulf!

[murphy80]

08:50 PM on 05/29/2010

get rid of the head CG guy and set a new tone on this disaster.
he is away on vacation today.................good time for a replacement

[Pero]

08:28 PM on 05/29/2010

The huge Ixtoc spill in Gulf of Mexico happened 31 years ago - WHAT are its long-term effects???

The blow-out of the Ixtoc I exploratory well in the Bay of Campeche on June 3, 1979, resulted in the release of about 475 000 metric tons of oil to the waters of the Gulf of Mexico. The authors calculate that approximately 24 000 metric tons of oil landed on Mexican beaches, about 4000 metric tons landed on Texas beaches, and about 120 000 metric tons, or 25 percent of the total, sank to the bottom of the Gulf. Since thorough studies of the ecological damage in Mexico have either not been carried out or the results have not been released, the authors estimate biological damage from the spill on the basis of data in the literature, laboratory experiments, and experience with similar spills elsewhere. They calculate that some 15 000 km2 of the Gulf of Mexico can be regarded as poisoned by the Ixtoc I oil, although damage to lagoons was less than expected. The full extent of the damage remains unknown.

[maxfax]

08:21 PM on 05/29/2010

As the head of the Louisiana Shrimpers Association said, the use of Corexit and the gushing hazardous oil reminds hm of his days in Vietnam and the use of Agent Orange. No worker is safe.

[peaceandfreedom]

08:09 PM on 05/29/2010

That asbestos won't hurt you (the US Navy to the shipyard workers in WW2)

That Agent Orange won't hurt you (the Pentagon to US military in Nam)

That (pick one) depleted uranium, oil well fire smoke, untested inoculations for germ warfare, won't hurt you (The Bush 1st administration to our service people in the First Iraq War.

That cloud of debris won't hurt you (our Emergency Response Feds to the rescue and clean up workers at the Twin Towers.

That oil won't hurt you (BP to cleanup workers in the Gulf)

And after thousands of deaths, life destroying chronic illness, delayed stress syndrome, and families torn apart by illness, financial ruin and lies, we have yet to see one person tried and convicted in any of these instances.

No reason to think it will change this time.

[Pero]

08:26 PM on 05/29/2010

The huge Ixtoc spill in Gulf of Mexico happened 31 years ago - WHAT are its long-term effects???

The blow-out of the Ixtoc I exploratory well in the Bay of Campeche on June 3, 1979, resulted in the release of about 475 000 metric tons of oil to the waters of the Gulf of Mexico. The authors calculate that approximately 24 000 metric tons of oil landed on Mexican beaches, about 4000 metric tons landed on Texas beaches, and about 120 000 metric tons, or 25 percent of the total, sank to the bottom of the Gulf. Since thorough studies of the ecological damage in Mexico have either not been carried out or the results have not been released, the authors estimate biological damage from the spill on the basis of data in the literature, laboratory experiments, and experience with similar spills elsewhere. They calculate that some 15 000 km2 of the Gulf of Mexico can be regarded as poisoned by the Ixtoc I oil, although damage to lagoons was less than expected. The full extent of the damage remains unknown.

[PotomacOracle]

11:25 PM on 05/29/2010

I have to say it....I TOLD YOU SO.

But no, you said I was just being "negative"... despite the deductions I made about the inability of BP to match the upward pressure and prevent lateral and vertical leakage around the well head. This eruption of oil and methane gas will continue for as long as there are dissociating CH4 events caused by either higher temperatures or lower pressure affecting their stability zone.

What will happen now is that the existing gusher sites will grow larger and as BP attempts to cap it they will weaken the crust around it and exacerbate the multiple gushers.

Now, is the time for the Federal Government to:

1. Nationalize BP.

2. Seize its global assets to assure complete compensation for the millions affected by BP's
incompetence. (See the NYT article about BP's internal memos, ignored engineer's warnings
about instability of the blow preventer. Probably won't be available until Sunday morning's
edition.)

3. Order the U.S. Navy to monitor clean-up and ensure that it is given access to all of the
alternatives available for reducing the amount of oil and methane gas entering the Gulf and its
environs. The Navy doesn't have all of BP's expertise but it does have a great deal, moreover,
it has the muscle to enforce compliance and is infinitely more competent and conscientious
than the Corps of Engineers.

[knmeye01]

04:03 PM on 05/30/2010

AMEN. I only wish that you were running the show.

[knmeye01]

04:04 PM on 05/30/2010

Oh, and by the way, the link depicting the oil spill has mysteriously changed angles. Why is our government putting all their trust in BP?

[helonias]

07:55 PM on 05/29/2010

THey just need Christy Whitman to go down tere and tell them the air is okay to breathe.

Just like before

[XzibitX]

07:00 PM on 05/29/2010

There is another deep water rig out there run by BP that is also skirting safety measures big time. Substantial safety concerns raised about the Atlantis, another BP oil rig.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/05/15/AR2010051502163.html

They say that if this one_blows, it would make the Horizon look like a mere bubble in comparison.

These rigs need to be shut down NOW, taken over and treated like an ENEMY COMBATANT. That will take laws to be declared and CONGRESS and the SENATE no doubt would BLOCK any attempt by OBAMA, as we all know Rethugs and Blue Dogs are GLOBALISTS and not AMERICANS.

[XzibitX]

06:52 PM on 05/29/2010

3rd post.

60 Minutes video reveals the incompetence of Transocean and BP and the sheer hubris involved with the negligence surrounding the Horizon rig explosion.

Also, you'll notice that Transocean abandoned a 35,000 ft deep drilling well when the drill broke. This pressurized hole could still be leaking untapped oil into the Gulf of Mexico. This may explain the other link I've added where Matt Simmons is stating that there may be another fissure or leak where the majority of the oil is coming from, NOT the one BP has been focusing us on. INCREDIBLE.

6O MINUTES VIDEO 1: Watch both part 1 and part 2. If you haven't seen these, it will make you rethink this devastating tragedy.

http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=6490348n&tag=related;photovideo

******

Prominent Oil Industry Insider: "There's Another Leak, Much Bigger, 5 to 6 Miles Away"

Matt Simmons was an energy adviser to President George W. Bush, is an adviser to the Oil Depletion Analysis Centre, and is a member of the National Petroleum Council and the Council on Foreign Relations. Simmon is chairman and CEO of Simmons & Company International, an investment bank catering to oil companies.

Simmons told Dylan Ratigan that "there's another leak, much bigger, 5 to 6 miles away" from the leaking riser and blowout preventer which we've all been watching on the underwater cameras:

More at:

http://georgewashington2.blogspot.com/2010/05/prominent-oil-industry-insider-theres.html

Make your own assessments.

[oonamanoona]

07:19 PM on 05/29/2010

I was already aware of all you've posted but thank you so much for posting it. This is so beyond huge and too many are participating in petty political arguments rather than addressing the real issues. The anger should be harnessed in a fight against a lack of attention given to this information. The Obama administration needs to address this rather than have Gibbs make platitudes such as Carville not knowing facts. The ball is being dropped.

[knmeye01]

04:40 PM on 05/30/2010

When it comes to the Gulf disaster, I don't care about words or an obvious lack of empathy on the part of the President.

What I care about is when I turn on the news and see the marshes filled with oil and no one is around. NO ONE. Oil is everywhere & no one is around cleaning it up. It is disgusting.

It is almost as disgusting as living in a country that allows this to happen without sending reinforcement. Where's the cavalry? Where's the cleanup crews? Where's the concerted effort making sure it doesn't get any worse? Sure, we might not have the technology to blow tires and rubber bands into a hole that is a mile beneath the surface, but we do have the capabilities of limiting the damage, cleaning up the water.

Carville was right that BP does not wish us well. They don't - so he should stop taking everything they tell us for granted. POTUS should stop believing them when they tell him they are doing all they can. They shipped 400 workers in for a photo op for Christ's sake.

If the President doesn't wake up - BP is going to be the end of him. He will go down in history as one of the smartest men in the country falling for a promise that equivocates to believing someone that owes you money has put a check in the mail.