The panel had tough questions for a BP official who wrote the company’s plans for the cement and well casing that may have failed and contributed to the explosion. The official, Mark E. Hafle, a drilling engineer, denied wrongdoing.
“Nobody believed there was going to be a safety issue,” Mr. Hafle said. “All the risks had been addressed, all the concerns had been addressed, and we had a model that suggested if executed properly we would have a successful job.”
Panel members and lawyers for Transocean questioned Mr. Hafle about BP’s decision not to conduct a test known as a “cement bond log,” which measures the strength of the cement.
“I think it’s logical that everyone here realizes the cement didn’t work,” said John McCarroll, a panel member and Minerals Management Service official. “Eleven people were killed. Do you still think the cement job was a success?”
“I don’t have any data that suggests the cement job was not a success,” Mr. Hafle replied, saying the explosion could have been caused by other failings.
The hearings this week began Wednesday and will conclude Saturday, before resuming in July. They have grown increasingly tense, with frequent disputes among the various parties’ lawyers.
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