BP said it may shut off a live video link of oil spewing from a pipe connected to its leaking well in the Gulf of Mexico, when it tries its "top kill" option to pump the well shut with mud and other material.
It is under review," a spokesman told Reuters. He declined to give a reason why the camera would stop broadcasting.
BP plans to start its "top kill" plan in the coming days. The London-based company said the measure has a 60-70 percent chance to halt the leak. [ID:nN25132932]
Congressman Ed Markey, a harsh critic of BP's response to the tragedy, said he had learned that BP planned to shut off the camera and criticized the decision.
"It is outrageous that BP would kill the video feed for the top kill. This BP blackout will obscure a vital moment in this disaster," he said in an emailed statement.
Oil from the slick has already begun to wash up on the shore in Louisiana and threatens to devastate the Gulf Coast.
BP has been accused of covering up the full extent of the spill after its estimate of the amount of oil leaking was shown to be too low.
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Monday, May 31, 2010
NOAA Can do credibel calculations now
New video provided by BP (BP.L) of its leaking underwater oil well should make it easier to calculate how much crude is spewing into the Gulf of Mexico, a senior government official said on Wednesday.
It's only been in the last couple of days that we have gotten video that was high enough resolution, long enough length and fast enough shutter speed to really do credible calculations," Jane Lubchenco, who heads the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, said a House committee hearing on the oil spill.
She did not say when NOAA would provide an updated estimate on the amount of oil leaking.
It's only been in the last couple of days that we have gotten video that was high enough resolution, long enough length and fast enough shutter speed to really do credible calculations," Jane Lubchenco, who heads the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, said a House committee hearing on the oil spill.
She did not say when NOAA would provide an updated estimate on the amount of oil leaking.
A Fundamental Mistake
Earlier in the day, well pressure tests showed an imbalance between the drill pipe choke and kill lines running from the drill deck to the blowout preventer. The pressure in the drill pipe was 1,400 pounds per square inch, while the choke and kill lines read zero PSI, according to BP documents gathered by the House Energy and Commerce Committee.
In BP's internal investigation, made public by the committee, BP said it might have been a "fundamental mistake" to continue with the procedure because there was an "indication of a very large abnormality."
As methane surged up the drill pipe and enveloped the rig, Brown said, a loud hiss of gas escaped from the well, which set off a stream of alarms.
"Gas alarms just kept piling up on top of each other more and more and more," Brown said. The rig was hit by a power blackout, and the explosion came soon after, he said.
"The first explosion basically threw me up against the control panel that I was standing in front of," Brown said.
As Brown raced to reach the rig's lifeboats, "it was just complete mayhem, chaos, people were scared, they were crying," Brown said.
The rig worker taking a muster of workers boarding the lifeboat, a man that Brown said he had known for nine years, did not recognize him.
This is a man that has known me for nine years and he cannot even remember my name," Brown said.
"It was just completely chaotic and nobody was really paying attention in my opinion," Brown said. "They were more concerned about just getting off the rig - escaping."
In BP's internal investigation, made public by the committee, BP said it might have been a "fundamental mistake" to continue with the procedure because there was an "indication of a very large abnormality."
As methane surged up the drill pipe and enveloped the rig, Brown said, a loud hiss of gas escaped from the well, which set off a stream of alarms.
"Gas alarms just kept piling up on top of each other more and more and more," Brown said. The rig was hit by a power blackout, and the explosion came soon after, he said.
"The first explosion basically threw me up against the control panel that I was standing in front of," Brown said.
As Brown raced to reach the rig's lifeboats, "it was just complete mayhem, chaos, people were scared, they were crying," Brown said.
The rig worker taking a muster of workers boarding the lifeboat, a man that Brown said he had known for nine years, did not recognize him.
This is a man that has known me for nine years and he cannot even remember my name," Brown said.
"It was just completely chaotic and nobody was really paying attention in my opinion," Brown said. "They were more concerned about just getting off the rig - escaping."
BP, Transocean Workers Argue
Swiss-based Transocean Ltd's Deepwater Horizon rig exploded while it was drilling a well a mile beneath the Gulf of Mexico under contract for London-based BP Plc. Eleven rig workers are presumed dead.
The Transocean mechanic's account could give the company more ammunition in its verbal battle with BP to assign blame for the disaster, which caused what is likely the biggest oil spill in U.S. history.
Around noon, rig workers met in a room adjacent to the rig's galley and "there was a slight argument that took place and a difference of opinions," said Douglas Brown, the rig's chief mechanic, speaking to a federal board of investigators in Kenner, Louisiana.
Brown said "a skirmish" took place between "the company man" from BP -- whose name he said he did not know -- and three Transocean employees.
"The company man was basically saying, 'Well this is how it's going to be,'" and Transocean rig workers "reluctantly agreed," Brown said.
The argument concerned "displacing the riser," Brown said, a reference to a decision made by rig personnel to remove heavy drilling mud from the drill pipe and replace it with water, in an attempt to wrap up drilling operations and plug the well with cement.
Drilling mud is a mixture of synthetic ingredients that is pumped into the well to exert downward pressure and prevent a column of oil and gas from rushing up the pipe.
The Transocean mechanic's account could give the company more ammunition in its verbal battle with BP to assign blame for the disaster, which caused what is likely the biggest oil spill in U.S. history.
Around noon, rig workers met in a room adjacent to the rig's galley and "there was a slight argument that took place and a difference of opinions," said Douglas Brown, the rig's chief mechanic, speaking to a federal board of investigators in Kenner, Louisiana.
Brown said "a skirmish" took place between "the company man" from BP -- whose name he said he did not know -- and three Transocean employees.
"The company man was basically saying, 'Well this is how it's going to be,'" and Transocean rig workers "reluctantly agreed," Brown said.
The argument concerned "displacing the riser," Brown said, a reference to a decision made by rig personnel to remove heavy drilling mud from the drill pipe and replace it with water, in an attempt to wrap up drilling operations and plug the well with cement.
Drilling mud is a mixture of synthetic ingredients that is pumped into the well to exert downward pressure and prevent a column of oil and gas from rushing up the pipe.
U.S. To Suspend Arctic Drilling?
Democratic Senator Mark Begich said he had been told by the Interior Department that the Obama administration will announce that consideration of any applications for exploratory drilling in the Arctic is suspended until 2011.
The suspension is part of measures President Barack Obama plans to order in response to the runaway oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.
He is also expected to announce tougher safety requirements for offshore oil drilling and strengthened inspections of oil rigs.
The Arctic decision will suspend plans by Shell Oil to drill exploratory wells off Alaska this summer.
Shell's plans to drill in the Arctic have faced increasing controversy in recent weeks as the government tries to contain the massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.
"I am frustrated that this decision by the Obama administration to halt offshore development for a year will cause more delays and higher costs for domestic oil and gas production to meet the nation's energy needs," Begich said in a statement
The suspension is part of measures President Barack Obama plans to order in response to the runaway oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.
He is also expected to announce tougher safety requirements for offshore oil drilling and strengthened inspections of oil rigs.
The Arctic decision will suspend plans by Shell Oil to drill exploratory wells off Alaska this summer.
Shell's plans to drill in the Arctic have faced increasing controversy in recent weeks as the government tries to contain the massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.
"I am frustrated that this decision by the Obama administration to halt offshore development for a year will cause more delays and higher costs for domestic oil and gas production to meet the nation's energy needs," Begich said in a statement
Military IN-Charge?
I think the president doesn't have any choice and he better go in, completely take over, perhaps with the military in charge," Nelson said.
"You've got to have BP's cooperation because they've got the technical instruments, but we've got to have somebody take charge. I think the U.S. military is best suited to do that," he said.
A CBS News poll found that 35 percent of Americans surveyed approved of the Obama administration's handling of the oil spill, 45 percent disapproved and 20 percent were undecided.
Republicans eager to make gains on Democrats' majorities in Congress in November have begun to raise questions about whether oversight was lacking.
"The Obama administration approved drilling at this site, approved the oil spill response plan and says it was paying attention," said Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell.
The most immediate concern is stopping the leak. The problem for the White House is that it has no real alternative except to rely on BP's technology and expertise to do it.
That means Obama is forced into an uneasy alliance with BP -- outraged that the leak took place but hopeful that the energy giant can stop it.
A mixed message of sorts has resulted. Interior Secretary Ken Salazar has railed publicly about BP: "Deadline after deadline has been missed ... If we find they're not doing what they're supposed to be doing, we'll push them out of the way appropriately."
However, Coast Guard Admiral Thad Allen, the U.S. disaster response chief, has softened his punches to avoid alienating the company. "They're exhausting every technical means possible to deal with that leak," Allen said.
Presidential historian Thomas Schwartz, a Vanderbilt University professor, said presidencies are often defined by the crises encountered.
He said the oil spill could prove to be a defining crisis but he cautioned against comparing the leak to Katrina, for instance.
"This one has been slowly developing and could have those qualities, but if BP were to suddenly get it capped, things could be defused very quickly. The air could go out of the balloon," Schwartz said.
"You've got to have BP's cooperation because they've got the technical instruments, but we've got to have somebody take charge. I think the U.S. military is best suited to do that," he said.
A CBS News poll found that 35 percent of Americans surveyed approved of the Obama administration's handling of the oil spill, 45 percent disapproved and 20 percent were undecided.
Republicans eager to make gains on Democrats' majorities in Congress in November have begun to raise questions about whether oversight was lacking.
"The Obama administration approved drilling at this site, approved the oil spill response plan and says it was paying attention," said Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell.
The most immediate concern is stopping the leak. The problem for the White House is that it has no real alternative except to rely on BP's technology and expertise to do it.
That means Obama is forced into an uneasy alliance with BP -- outraged that the leak took place but hopeful that the energy giant can stop it.
A mixed message of sorts has resulted. Interior Secretary Ken Salazar has railed publicly about BP: "Deadline after deadline has been missed ... If we find they're not doing what they're supposed to be doing, we'll push them out of the way appropriately."
However, Coast Guard Admiral Thad Allen, the U.S. disaster response chief, has softened his punches to avoid alienating the company. "They're exhausting every technical means possible to deal with that leak," Allen said.
Presidential historian Thomas Schwartz, a Vanderbilt University professor, said presidencies are often defined by the crises encountered.
He said the oil spill could prove to be a defining crisis but he cautioned against comparing the leak to Katrina, for instance.
"This one has been slowly developing and could have those qualities, but if BP were to suddenly get it capped, things could be defused very quickly. The air could go out of the balloon," Schwartz said.
A Nightmare for Obama.
Unlike Hurricane Katrina and its immediate, frightful images of people in crisis, the gushing BP oil well has been a slow-moving behemoth that is now taking a political toll on the president.
Obama was already immersed in a long list of problems -- pushing a financial regulation overhaul, prodding Europe to stem a financial crisis, pressuring Iran and North Korea.
And don't forget the 9.9 percent U.S. jobless rate, two wars and Obama's hopes for immigration and energy legislation before Washington stops for November 2 congressional elections.
Now the greatest environmental calamity since the Exxon Valdez spill in 1989 has fallen into his lap. He declared it "heartbreaking."
"We will not rest until this well is shut, the environment is repaired and the cleanup is complete," Obama said on Wednesday. He makes his second visit to the Gulf on Friday.
The word at the White House is that Obama is frustrated at the delays BP Plc has encountered in stopping the leak. "Plug the damn hole," he has told senior government officials.
And he is feeling heat from some of his own allies to get something done.
James Carville, the Louisiana native and Democratic consultant who helped Bill Clinton get elected in 1992, is known as the "Ragin' Cajun" and here is why:
"Man, you (Obama) got to get down here and take control of this! Put somebody in charge of this thing and get this moving! We're about to die down here!" he told ABC's "Good Morning America."
Florida Democratic Senator Bill Nelson, fearful for his state's coastline, was less bellicose, but just as worried.
He told CNN if a BP "top kill" procedure to stem the leak does not work, then Obama has to order the federal government to take over the operations
Obama was already immersed in a long list of problems -- pushing a financial regulation overhaul, prodding Europe to stem a financial crisis, pressuring Iran and North Korea.
And don't forget the 9.9 percent U.S. jobless rate, two wars and Obama's hopes for immigration and energy legislation before Washington stops for November 2 congressional elections.
Now the greatest environmental calamity since the Exxon Valdez spill in 1989 has fallen into his lap. He declared it "heartbreaking."
"We will not rest until this well is shut, the environment is repaired and the cleanup is complete," Obama said on Wednesday. He makes his second visit to the Gulf on Friday.
The word at the White House is that Obama is frustrated at the delays BP Plc has encountered in stopping the leak. "Plug the damn hole," he has told senior government officials.
And he is feeling heat from some of his own allies to get something done.
James Carville, the Louisiana native and Democratic consultant who helped Bill Clinton get elected in 1992, is known as the "Ragin' Cajun" and here is why:
"Man, you (Obama) got to get down here and take control of this! Put somebody in charge of this thing and get this moving! We're about to die down here!" he told ABC's "Good Morning America."
Florida Democratic Senator Bill Nelson, fearful for his state's coastline, was less bellicose, but just as worried.
He told CNN if a BP "top kill" procedure to stem the leak does not work, then Obama has to order the federal government to take over the operations
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