Before explosion, BP was warned to slow down

[Judi Lynn]

Source: Los Angeles Times

Before explosion, BP was warned to slow down
By Ashley Powers
Los Angeles Times Staff Writer
May 26, 2010 | 1:20 p.m.

Hours before the fatal accident that sunk the Deepwater Horizon oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico, Transocean workers quarreled with BP officials who wanted to go ahead and finish the job despite earlier problems, a rig mechanic told a U.S. Coast Guard investigatory committee Wednesday.

Douglas Brown, the rig's chief mechanic, testified that three Transocean officials balked at the desire of a BP "company man" to go ahead with a process to clear the riser with seawater. The riser is the connector pipe between the rig and well, and this would have been a final step to finish the exploratory drilling job BP had hired Transocean to complete.

"There was a slight argument took place … the company man was saying, 'This is how it's going to be,' " said Brown, who could not identify the BP official.

After the mid-morning meeting, Brown said, Transocean specialist Jimmy Harrell grumbled, "Well, I guess that's what we have those 'pinchers' for" – apparently referring to the shear rams on the blowout preventer on the sea floor, an emergency device used only when all other means of controlling the oil well have failed. Brown's account suggests Harrell thought BP was taking a grave risk.



Read more: http://www.latimes.com/news/la-bpwarned26-m,0,1360959.story?track=rss&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+latimes%2Fnews%2Fscience+%28L.A.+Times+-+Science%29

[aquart]

1. We still haven't gotten a straight story about the SLB evac either.

They left on a "regularly scheduled helicopter flight" but left their equipment behind? Now why would they do that if they knew when they were scheduled to leave?

[CountAllVotes]

2. we will never know the truth

we won't live to learn it. :( :( :( :( :( :( :( :nuke:

[Ex Lurker]

7. I disagree. every survivor on that rig has been deposed under oath several times already

and most likely will continue to be for some time to come. It will all come out in court. It may take a few years, but there won't be any secrets left when all is said and done.

[texastoast]

8. My money says we will

It might not get to us in our "liberal media," but the story will come out in the lawsuits.

Whether or not we have lost interest by then remains to be seen.

[w4rma]

10. Here is some truth right here. I can definiately see some BP bean counter saying this.

The engineers were doing their jobs, but the no-nothing bean counter comes in and wants them to cut some corners that would help him get a bigger bonus.

[Blue_Tires]

3. a lot of rocks in BP land are being kicked over...

[inna]

4. God, I want these f*ckers to go out of business, period.

Unfortunately, they will probably get a taxpayer-funded bailout instead, raise prices on gas, and ultimately enjoy even greater profits.

:banghead:

[Downwinder]

5. I would think that the LA Times staff would be well aware of the phrase

"Penney pinchers."

[nashville_brook]

6. k n r

[Ed Barrow]

9. Dollar signs blinded them to safety

Oil companies have that history.

[maxsolomon]

12. Corporations must maximize profit for shareholders.

That BP "company man" was doing his job to limit the duration of the work - delays cost money. Nothing else matters - see Don Blankenship.

[alp227]

11. Predictable news cycle: Whenever a disaster occurs,

it comes up that there were unheard warnings. :banghead:

[fascisthunter]

13. They Should be sued into bankruptcy

[Poll_Blind]

14. BP, Transocean workers argued before blast-witness

Source: Reuters

* Rig's chief mechanic testifies to federal investigators

* BP employee said 'This is how it's going to be'- witness

* BP probe says 'fundamental mistake' may have been made

HOUSTON, May 26 (Reuters) - Before rig workers aboard a doomed drilling platform performed a procedure that BP Plc says may have been a "fundamental mistake," there was a "skirmish" between BP and Transocean staff about whether to proceed, the rig's chief mechanic told federal investigators on Wednesday.

--snip--

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.

Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSN2620669020100526?type=marketsNews

---

MUCH more at the link.

PB

[JuniperLea]

15. Wow... hitting mainstream news now...

Good.

[Poll_Blind]

17. The whole article is pretty chilling. I am thankful the feds are taking testimony this early.

This needs to be an example of a government moving quickly.

PB

[CatholicEdHead]

16. I heard it on All Things Considered

It sounds pretty damming towards the BP employee.

[calimary]

18. I want names.

I want to know who the "company man" was.

[Poll_Blind]

19. It appears the BP employee in question made it out unscathed, unlike the 11...

...who died.

PB

[NYC_SKP]

20. Did not the Transocean workers get the hell off the rig by helicopter soon after?

And when asked for a ride off by BP was told "No", so chartered their own?

I can't find the DU posts describing this series of events.

Anyone remember reading about this?

:shrug:

[Poll_Blind]

23. I thought everyone had to actually hit the lifeboats, no time for heli service. BUT...

...if you find that information, please post it here! If I have some spare time I'll try digging for it myself.

Ugh!

PB

[NYC_SKP]

24. Check these posts and the links:

http://demopedia.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x4399354

And especially this one, it was Schlumberger who wanted off:

Excerpt:

This is the "Oilfield Trash (Oilfield/Drilling Rig Workers) Scuttlebutt,but this is the Story circulating in New Orleans:




" BP contracted Schlumberger (SLB) to run the Cement Bond Log (CBL) test that was the final test on the plug that was skipped. The people testifying have been very coy about mentioning this, and you'll see why.

SLB is an extremely highly regarded (and incredibly expensive) service company. They place a high standard on safety and train their workers to shut down unsafe operations.

SLB gets out to the Deepwater Horizon to run the CBL, and they find the well still
kicking heavily, which it should not be that late in the operation. SLB orders the"company man" (BP's man on the scene that runs the operation) to dump kill fluid down the well and shut-in the well. The company man refuses. SLB in the very next sentence asks for a helo to take all SLB personel back to shore. The company man says there are no more helo's scheduled for the rest of the week (translation: you're here to do a job, now do it). SLB gets on the horn to shore, calls SLB's corporate HQ, and gets a helo flown out there at SLB's expense and takes all SLB personel to shore.

6 hours later, the platform explodes.

Pick your jaw up off the floor now. No CBL was run after the pressure tests because the
contractor high-tailed it out of there. If this story is true, the company man (who
survived) should go to jail for 11 counts of negligent homicide."

It does seem that news of a Schlumberger evacuation of their personnel would have leaked before now, but on the other hand it seems bizarre that someone would put together and circulate a false story like this.

"In any case, as you said, if it is more or less true the stuff is really going to hit the fan.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x8340018

:patriot:

[Poll_Blind]

25. WHOA! Thank you very much for posting that. I'm going to have to check that out MUCH...

...more. DAMN!

PB

[era veteran]

21. The unnamed company man should be charged with 11 counts of

negligent murder as well as BP.

[Poll_Blind]

22. I think that's actually a real likelihood. And BP is going to bear the brunt of it...

...too for putting him in charge of those kinds of decisions if this comes out to be the way it sounds.

PB

[Stuart G]

26. Nice to know there was a witness...let's see, perhaps BP will

say that fellow is.."lost"

[SkyDaddy7]

27. I feel really bad for the rig workers...

You can clearly tell that they had little emergency training and I bet that caused a few deaths as well! BP cut every corner they could!

Just in the past 1-2yrs we have seen the legacy of the Cheney/Bush Administration give us the financial collapse leading to the worst economic conditions since the great depression, a horrible plane crash & now the worst environmental disaster in American history that could end up being the worst environmental disaster the world has ever seen! Who knows what right wing deregulation disaster is next?

...And now the country wants to give power back to the people who's policies have literally destroyed this country!

Oh well...I think America is headed for some really dark times ahead!

This sucks!

[Poll_Blind]

28. It has just cocked over this country which was already in pretty rough shape. n/t

PB