BP about to take its best shot at shutting massive oil leak
Thirty-six days after the Deepwater Horizon exploded, killing 11 crew members and setting off a massive oil leak, BP may finally be ready to attempt to seal the drill site with a “top kill” of heavy mud followed by cement.
I’ve seen estimates of success at 60 to 70 percent, so keep your fingers crossed.
All of them. It’s a critical moment, the last best chance to stop the flow for weeks if not months. If this doesn’t work…
Here’s how BP describes the process:
“A total of 50,000 barrels of mud will be on location to kill the well – far more than necessary, but we want to be prepared for anything. Pumping capacity on location is more than 30,000 hydraulic horsepower.
The mud will be pumped down the 6-5/8 inch drill pipe (pipe is connected to the Q4000), then through 3-inch hoses, which go through the manifold on the seafloor. Then the mud moves through another set of 3-inch hoses attached to the Deepwater Horizon BOP choke and kill lines.
With the manifold, we can also pump the ‘junk shot’ if necessary to stop too much of the kill mud going out through the top of the BOP rather than going down into the well to stop the flow. By switching valves in the subsea manifold, we can inject the ‘bridging material’ (the junk), which will prevent such losses and enable the top kill to continue.
We’ve been testing the junk shot on-shore, looking at different configurations of what might restrict the flow out of the Deepwater Horizon riser and what types of materials would help shut it off. Materials in a junk shot can include well-known items such as pieces of tires, golf balls, and pieces of rope.”
After initialing declaring that public access to the video feed would be halted during the operation, BP relented last night and announced the feed would continue. It warned:
“Throughout the extended top kill procedure – which may take up to two days to complete – very significant changes in the appearance of the flows at the seabed may be expected. These will not provide a reliable indicator of the overall progress, or success or failure, of the top kill operation as a whole. BP will report on the progress of the operation as appropriate and on its outcome when complete.”
BP had suggested the operation could begin as early as dawn today, but as of 7:30 a.m., there is no indication from the video that operations had actually begun.
On Thursday, Interior Department officials are expected to deliver the results of a 30-day review of the offshore drilling program to President Obama, including recommendations for how tighten oversight. The next day, Obama is scheduled to visit the Gulf.
Congress has also been investigating, as The New York Times reports:
In the hours before the Deepwater Horizon oil rig exploded last month in the Gulf of Mexico, there were strong warning signs that something was terribly wrong with the well, according to a Congressional committee that was briefed on the accident by executives from BP.
Among the red flags, the panel said, were several equipment readings suggesting that gas was bubbling into the well, a potential sign of an impending blowout. Investigators also noted “other events in the 24 hours before the explosion that require further inquiry,” including a critical decision to replace heavy mud in the pipe rising from the seabed with seawater, possibly increasing the risk of an explosion.
…. Some of those who survived the explosion, including managers from BP and Transocean, are expected to testify at hearings in Louisiana to be held by the Coast Guard and the federal Minerals Management Service, beginning Wednesday.
The testimony may help clear up some of the uncertainties about the day of the accident, including who was making the decisions. But the new information from BP — combined with past testimony by executives, analysis of documents by The New York Times and interviews with independent drilling experts — is beginning to paint a picture of a complex operation that went awry just as it was drawing to a close.
Drilling logs from the Deepwater Horizon suggest that shortly after midnight on the morning of the explosion, attention had turned to temporarily plugging and capping the well so the rig could disconnect and move to another job. Halliburton, the contractor hired by BP to provide cementing services, had spent the past several weeks cementing each new segment of the well into place. Halliburton was also responsible for plugging it….
However, in testimony before Congressional hearings, Halliburton executives have said that the company adhered strictly to the specifications provided by BP for the cementing of the well.”
The only break we’ve seemed to get in this whole tragedy has been with the weather. NOAA predicts that it will continue to be calm, for the most part keeping the oil offshore, although portions of the Louisiana coast have already been hammered. Bad as it is, the only solace is that it could be much much worse.
Like I said, keep your fingers crossed, and pray.
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237 comments Add your comment
Outhouse Gokart
May 26th, 2010
10:27 am
I dont listen to AM radio…talk or otherwise. And I dont listen to XM either…what a ripoff this XM.
Peadawg
May 26th, 2010
10:28 am
“No assumptions needed.”
Oh boy. LOL!!!!! I listen to music on my way to work. Not talk radio. Quit assuming. Right Bosch? Listen to 96.1….definitely not talk radio.
Bosch
May 26th, 2010
10:31 am
Pennsylvanian,
No, no all of them, but the ones best suited to deal with this work for the company — they know their equipment better than anyone.
Who the hell is the government supposed to call in to intervene? I think Clark Kent is busy right now.
Inquisition Daily, A Ye Olde Spanish Publication
May 26th, 2010
10:32 am
Outhouse Gokart
May 26th, 2010
10:27 am
I dont listen to AM radio…talk or otherwise. And I dont listen to XM either…what a ripoff this XM.
Peadawg
May 26th, 2010
10:28 am
“No assumptions needed.”
Oh boy. LOL!!!!! I listen to music on my way to work. Not talk radio. Quit assuming. Right Bosch? Listen to 96.1….definitely not talk radio.
I thought you two would be flattered given that I merely emulate you. Now quit with the Talk Radio lies. Give us something worth reading. We can all tune in to AM trash talk ourselves if that is what we wanted to hear. And to think that you guys even spread those lies for free. I’m sure Hannity and company really appreciate it.
Union
May 26th, 2010
10:32 am
@outhouse –
on the sec of defense job offer.. I saw a video of gibbs response to this issue with various reporters asking the same question over a period of months.. first the response was.. I was out of the office.. so I don’t know what happened.. then it was.. need a little more time to research it.. lastly it was.. I have previously addressed that issue and I will not speak of it anymore..
Peadawg
May 26th, 2010
10:33 am
For those who say, “What can he that he hasn’t done already”, what exactly has he done besides give a couple of press conferences blaming everyone else?
Gale
May 26th, 2010
10:34 am
Bosch, I bet the V could handle it. Obama should send out a call to them.
Jackie
May 26th, 2010
10:34 am
Dr. Stephen Chu, Secretary of Energy and Nobel Peace Prize winner in Physical, 1997, says he has assembled as staff of experts from Cal Tech, Cal Berkley, MIT, foreign countries and universities starting from the second day of the oil leak.
They have not been able to come up with a logical methods of stopping the leak to date.
http://www.energy.gov/organization/dr_steven_chu.htm
Jackie
May 26th, 2010
10:37 am
Dr. Chu was a Nobel Winner in Physics. Sorry for the typo.
Outhouse Gokart
May 26th, 2010
10:38 am
I think AquaMan or The Incredible Mr Limpet might be more appropriate than Clark Kent.
Jay
May 26th, 2010
10:38 am
Just for the record, Peadawg, and to finish our earlier conversation:
You agree that if the Dems had criticized the two Bushes and Reagan for missing a wreath-laying, that evidence will surface in the next day or two?
FrankLeeDarling
May 26th, 2010
10:38 am
some positive news upstairs folks
@@
May 26th, 2010
10:38 am
What you’re seeing is public perception. When Katrina hit, it was the public’s perception that Bush was unfazed.
With the oil spill, it’s the public’s perception that Obama appears unfazed
It’s all about the image projected.
I must say, although I wasn’t impressed with this Erickson fella’s comments, I’m disappointed to read that Obama is opting for a vacation over placing the wreath. Having said that, I still prefer Joe do it. If not Joe, then Michelle Obama, but she’s gonna be on vacation with her husband, so Joe’s a go.
Bosch
May 26th, 2010
10:40 am
Gale,
You bet!
Outhouse –
AquaMan – Damn I can’t believe I didn’t think of him first.
Peadawg
May 26th, 2010
10:41 am
Sure. But again, you’re assuming I was talking about just Democrats in the media. I’m sure, just there are some ignorant Rednecks that are coming down on Obama now but didn’t do it w/ Bush…there’s some ignorant African Americans on the other side that came down on Bush but give Obama a pass. Just sayin. And you know it’s true too.
AmVet
May 26th, 2010
10:41 am
OGK, you’re correct on this mattter, as usual.
Conventional AM/FM radio is death. I’ve not heard enough Sirius/XM to say with certainty, but suspect it is only a little better.
I listen to AmVet radio. Only the best stuff, only all the time.
(And very occasionally some NPR/classical on WABE…)
Jay
May 26th, 2010
10:45 am
Peadawg, I would certainly agree that both sides indulge in unfair attacks. No further evidence needed on that particular count.
Peadawg
May 26th, 2010
10:50 am
“Peadawg, I would certainly agree that both sides indulge in unfair attacks. No further evidence needed on that particular count.”
That was my point all along, Jay. So, to say IOKIYAR isn’t right.
Disgusted
May 26th, 2010
10:51 am
Conventional AM/FM radio is death. I’ve not heard enough Sirius/XM to say with certainty, but suspect it is only a little better.
Well, Sirius/XM is better because of no commercials—except for the commercials for themselves, run as TV theme songs modified to plug Sirius/XM.
Jay
May 26th, 2010
10:59 am
Peadawg, you said explicitly that Dems had used the same line of attacks against presidents Reagan, Bush and Bush when they had skipped the wreath-laying.
I don’t think that’s true. I think that’s a particularly odious line of attack that Republicans use against Democrats, but that Democrats do not level at Republicans.
We’ll see.
godless heathen
May 26th, 2010
10:59 am
Sirrius/XM is waaaaaaay better than AM/FM. Worth every penny of the cost. I cannot listen to 5 minutes of AM or FM now without my head about exploding.
Dusty
May 26th, 2010
11:26 am
Awww …just another day at the blogging booth…
I liked President Bush. He did what he thought was best for the country no matter who liked it. a man of good character.
President Obama is not my favorite president. But he is not an oil disaster expert and I do not expect him to be. As far as I can see, the government is doing its part in working with BP. the admiral of the Coast Guard is an ideal spokesman. A stable “iron” man if ever I saw one.
Sooo…
President Bush is in no way responsible for Katrina. He doesn’t generate hurricanes. He followed the law on giving help. There are always things that can be done better.
President Obama is in no way responsible for a leaking oil well under the sea. He did not cause it. He is following protocol with the Coast Guard and whomever is assigned to such catastrophes.
BP is also doing all it can to stop the leak. Neither the government or BP can make a profit, save all lives, or have complete knowledge of such disasters. The experts are working on it. Armchair experts always say that “something could be done better”.
Forget it! For once, I agree with Bookman. Keep your fingers crossed and pray. That is the SENSIBLE thing to do., ’specially for those out there doing the dirty and dangerous work on this problem. Don’t forget them or the fishermen who are losing their income and their environment.. So many suffer!! Let us not aggrevate this tragedy with petty bickering.
Scout
May 26th, 2010
11:37 am
Normal:
I still think “shaking hands” would fall outside that but Ooo Rah!
md
May 26th, 2010
11:48 am
“Obama has given the appearance of being lacksadasical about this oil spill, with that being said, does anyone not believe that 8 years of bushism has contributed to this sorry state of regulation and enforcement?”
Just an excuse Mick. MMS was a mess coming in – well documented. If it wasn’t a day one priority for someone in this admin to make sure it was up to par, there is no way in hell one can blame that on Bush – not 16 months later.
jason
May 26th, 2010
1:14 pm
well it is 1:17 pm has anyone heard if the top kill has started and howit is goin… if your source is bp it is not worth the paper it is printed on
ncgreybr
May 26th, 2010
1:39 pm
Ya gotta luv it! The people who, last month, were screaming for the RFederal Government to get out of our lives, are now asking “where is the government and why aren’t they doing something?”
Which one are we gonna have, big government that takes care of us or little government and let the companies take care of us?
ncgreybr
May 26th, 2010
1:40 pm
BTW, I said “now asking” because I didn’t want to say “whining”.
Mike
May 26th, 2010
3:20 pm
Heckuva job, Brownie (2010).
Bob
May 26th, 2010
3:21 pm
Pray, but just make sure you don’t pray out loud in a public building, or a public school. Jay, didn’t you just write a piece that prayer has no place in government? Isn’t this a government operation? They had to approve the work.
Reverie
May 26th, 2010
3:30 pm
Look, I can’t stand either McCain or Obama. I think we need to drill but obviously this was a very bad screw up and it must be addressed. For those that think the President, no matter who they are, had anything to do with this, you are spewing ignorant nonsense. Calling it Bush or Cheney or Obama’s fault is just specious and reveals you care less about the environment and more about getting people to respond to your rhetoric. Personally, I have hated BP since they put a pipeline across my land. This doesn’t make they apt to “Friend” them any time soon. I think it was an accident and it will take years to fix it, but an accident just the same.
DemocratsRule!!!
May 26th, 2010
4:28 pm
The drill head will produce more heavy mud so the leak will backlash a portion of the dynamic pressure in order to stagnate the flow of seawater. In physics, this is known as a random, predeterministic predipation. There will be a fix to stop the highly pressurized black gold and BP will profit from it by offering it to other oil rig companies and Obama will take his share as ‘well’. There will be slight changes to the coastal areas in the coming months but nothing major. The fix is already cemented and we will see the oil pretty much disappear from the ocean. The heavy mud is good stuff as I have seen it – same stuff Bookman uses for his regular facials at the AJC Gym/Spa. Questions?
Thomas Paine
May 26th, 2010
5:49 pm
If I understand correctly, this is the first significant leak from an offshore well in forty-one years, yet the left-wing America-haters will use this as the reason to prohibit increased offshore drilling. So offshore oil will join nuclear power as verboten.
So someone please explain to me what we’re going to do for energy.
And yes, why not blame Obama and make this his Katrina. He’s destroying the United States in about every other way he can.
Thomas Paine
May 26th, 2010
5:50 pm
“The heavy mud is good stuff as I have seen it – same stuff Bookman uses for his regular facials at the AJC Gym/Spa.”
That’s funny. And quite possibly true.
Thomas Paine
May 26th, 2010
5:55 pm
“… massive amounts of rotting, toxic crap Mother Nature, in her wisdom, doesn’t generally loose upon her subjects but in bits and pieces here and there.”
Are you talking about Bookman’s columns?
Bud Wiser
May 27th, 2010
9:16 am
“Mick
May 26th, 2010
10:07 am
Obama has given the appearance of being lacksadasical about this oil spill, with that being said, does anyone not believe that 8 years of bushism has contributed to this sorry state of regulation and enforcement?
I knew that some idiot would eventually get around to blaming Bush; his type are too stupid and non-thinking not to….
JS
May 28th, 2010
1:21 am
Several of you are showing enormous stupidity in thinking that you understand what happened in New Orleans with Katrina. It wasn’t Bush, it wasn’t Nagin, it wasn’t people not wanting to evacuate. They wanted to but couldn’t, yet that is NOT the problem.
The problem was an ENGINEERING FAILURE of levees built by the Corps. Nothing more, nothing less. Engineering Failure of epic proportions, admitted by the Corps itself on June 1 2006.
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2006/06/01/national/main1675244.shtml
Stop showing your ignorance.
pp02ytw
June 1st, 2010
7:17 am
I really dont see how this is Obama’s fault?? Surely this would’ve occurred whoever the president is.. are you guys really that thick??