*** Must Watch *** -- 60 Minutes Report on Deepwater Horizon Explosion

[WhipperSnapper]

I just finished watching Sunday's 60 Minutes report on the Deepwater Horizon explosion and thought that it contained better reporting on the cause of the explosion (and a discussion of exactly who is responsible) than all of the past weeks of the nightly newscasts combined. It also contains a long and riveting interview with one of the crew members who discussed what he thinks led up to the blast and failure of the blowout protector in detail. From the interview it sounds like he was lucky to have survived.

You can find it here:

PART 1 -- http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2010/05/16/60minutes/main6490197.shtml?tag=contentMain;cbsCarousel

PART 2 -- http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=6490378n&tag=contentMain;contentAux

If that link doesn't work for some reason, you can also find it from the main page:

http://www.cbsnews.com/sections/60minutes/main3415.shtml

 

[BladeVenom]

Sounds interesting, I'll have to watch it.

 

[palehorse]

I watched most of this story last night and I have to agree with you that this is, by far, the best piece so far.

It's some seriously scary shit though...

 

[WhipperSnapper]

I watched most of this story last night and I have to agree with you that this is, by far, the best piece on this story so far.

It's some seriously scary shit though...

Mike Williams's description of what he had to do to escape the burning and shaking rig sounded like a harrowing experience.

I think this might become a textbook example of how rushing sensitive and delicate operations in order to earn a larger profit (and reduce costs?) can lead to very expensive fuckups. I can certainly understand the companies' desire to hurry it up (which helps reduce the cost of oil and gasoline for us?), but in this case it was pound foolish. It doesn't sound as though there was any penny-saving wisdom.

 

[Balt]

Will give it a watch. Thanks for the links.

 

[JSt0rm]

hopefully the ballsack that said don't worry about the ruber and that bp manager who told them to pull the mud are among the dead

 

[Fear No Evil]

hopefully the ballsack that said don't worry about the ruber and that bp manager who told them to pull the mud are among the dead

You are wishing for the DEATH of people over this? Wow.

 

[Zorkorist]

An eyewitness story into what might be called a catastrophe.

Best thing I have seen out of 60 minutes in 10 years or more.

Yes, watch this.

-John

 

[MrColin]

Sounds like willful negligence on the part of BP, Transocean, and Halliburton, contributed to this colossal clusterfuck. Anyone care to wager on managers from BP or Transocean getting jail time?

 

[Zorkorist]

As I understand it, from the above mentioned 60 minutes story,

Haliburton was there to put in the cement plugs.
Transocean had been operating the rig, and the rubber floated up under their watch.
BP was there to seal the deal...

These guys were all partying for sealing the deal, and they blew up, and released catastropic damage to the Gulf of Mexico.

-John

 

[herm0016]

interesting article. I have been working in the oil field and working for BP on land. this article brings up a lot more questions, as they lead you to believe things and never actually spell them out. i will not take this as truth.

 

[FaaR]

What I'd like to know is why the damn thing keeled over and sank.

Last I checked, oil rigs are made of steel, which does not burn, and they're built to withstand hurricanes and whatnot. So it really shouldn't have gone to the bottom just like that. If it hadn't done that, there probably wouldn't have been any leakage of oil to speak of, despite the fire aboard the rig since the extension pipe up from the sea floor would still have been intact.

 

[Zorkorist]

It's a floating oil rig... one of the biggest stryctures man has ever made,

After 9/11, you should know any structure can burn.

-John

 

[FaaR]

Duh. What does the fact it was a floating (until it sank) rig have to do with anything?

The structure and composition of that oil rig is completely different to the WTC office towers, so whatever point you were trying to make you pretty much failed horribly.

 

[Zorkorist]

The common denominator is fire, extreme heat.

-John

 

[RedCOMET]

Sounds like alleged willful negligence on the part of BP & Transocean; and Halliburton may have contributed to this colossal clusterfuck. Anyone care to wager on managers from BP or Transocean getting jail time?

Just needed to clarify your post for the other folks here.


Also, that rubber that came up the riser, may not have actually been the bits of the annular at all. That rubber could have been from a previous cement job. This is a fairly accurate description.


by derrickhand300 May 17, 2010 7:42 PM EDT
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2010/05/16/60minutes /main6490087.shtml?tag=contentMain;cbsCarousel

the rubber found by the derrickhand was from drilling out the rubber plug used during each casing job-this wel had several strings of casing-so several rubber plugs had to be drilled out and this is the incident that the driler told him not to worry about because it was (And Is) normal. The rubber plugs are drilled slowly with little bit weight so as not to "Punch Through" it and have a donut of rubber on the bottom of your drilling assembly. While drilling the rubber derrickhands are trained to watch the shakers for rubber in the returs to report progress of drilling out the rubber plugs

I have seen this stuff come over the shaker house myself. I have even seen 5 gallon bucks get filled with this crap. It takes a bit of work to drill through these things so as not to destroy them and keep in the wellbore. What is interesting to note is that is that the ET may have thought it could have been the annular seal b/c right after they drill out these casing string ( through the rubber and cement), they do a pressure test to determine the stregth of the casing cement / formation around the casing shoe. SO the ET observations about the rubber could have been in conjuction with with a pressure test.

I give this guy props for speaking out though. Really makes me want to rethink my career in the oilfield... and I have worked on the Deepwater Horizon for a little bit last year.

 

[RedCOMET]

What I'd like to know is why the damn thing keeled over and sank.

Last I checked, oil rigs are made of steel, which does not burn, and they're built to withstand hurricanes and whatnot. So it really shouldn't have gone to the bottom just like that. If it hadn't done that, there probably wouldn't have been any leakage of oil to speak of, despite the fire aboard the rig since the extension pipe up from the sea floor would still have been intact.

From the accounts of the ET in the 60 min report, if water tight doors, key phrase being water tight doors, are being blown off their hinges and flying across rooms into other bulkhead, i guess the door isn't really do its job. Explosion in enclosed, sealed rooms are likely to have affected the water tight integrity of the vessel. Also, with the fire and what not going on, the ballast control system could have been compromised. Sounds like a of critical safety systems failed, like a cascade. lastly, i believe the massive amounts of water they sprayed on the rig to try and control the fire might have contributed to its exteme listing and subsequent sinking.

 

[Zorkorist]

The guy who spoke on 60 minutes deserves great props.

It's too often that Gobernment doesn't allow for free speach.

-John

 

[Zorkorist]

LOL, Let me get this straight...

You're saying rubber comes up the pipe all the time?

-John

Just needed to clarify your post for the other folks here.


Also, that rubber that came up the riser, may not have actually been the bits of the annular at all. That rubber could have been from a previous cement job. This is a fairly accurate description.


by derrickhand300 May 17, 2010 7:42 PM EDT
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2010/05/16/60minutes /main6490087.shtml?tag=contentMain;cbsCarousel


I have seen this stuff come over the shaker house myself. I have even seen 5 gallon bucks get filled with this crap. It takes a bit of work to drill through these things so as not to destroy them and keep in the wellbore. What is interesting to note is that is that the ET may have thought it could have been the annular seal b/c right after they drill out these casing string ( through the rubber and cement), they do a pressure test to determine the stregth of the casing cement / formation around the casing shoe. SO the ET observations about the rubber could have been in conjuction with with a pressure test.

I give this guy props for speaking out though. Really makes me want to rethink my career in the oilfield... and I have worked on the Deepwater Horizon for a little bit last year.

 

[JSt0rm]

You are wishing for the DEATH of people over this? Wow.

yes. amazing isn't it. Here check this one, "I wish cancer upon you"

 

[Zorkorist]

The only thing that should be comming up the pipe is mud, or gas...

Wouldn't, shouldn't rubber raise an alarm?

-John

 

[RedCOMET]

LOL, Let me get this straight...

You're saying rubber comes up the pipe all the time?

-John

Not quite... What i was trying to articulate was that they set casing, and cement the casing in place. in order to prevent cement from coming up the wrong in the drill pipe, they have one way valves usually made up in large part of rubber in the casing string. In order to continue drilling the well, they drill out any cement that was left in the casing, and drill through the rubber one-way valve(s). This stuff comes to the surface were its collected. Normal SOP is to drill through the cement and drill about 10' feet of new formation and perform a Leak off test or a formation integrity test. Both test involve shutting in / sealing the well and pressuring up on the well to see how strong the casing shoe / formation is. So in performing either test, the annular seals in the BOP stack are utilized.

You can work the pipe, ie move it up or down, while they annular are engaged. This is so that you can get a tool joint on the snug up on the annular valve, or so that you can ensure that the Drill pipe is not stuck while in a well control situation. Now, with regards to the 60 min report, it may have been the rubber from that that one-way valve which is normal. or it could have been from the annular. It just not enough info to go on. I guess it depends on how much force they on the pipe while it was being pulled up through the annular, and if they accidentally pulled a tool joint through it. Its hard to say. The only way to know what went wrong on the BOP stack is to bring it to the surface and check it out.

Most of the time, the hole is circulated clean before they perform these test. And in my experience, they try to collect and segregate any non rocks that come over the shakers because they don't have the necessary solids management equipment to deal with it, or because its needs to be disposed of in a special way.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cementing_equipment
http://www.glossary.oilfield.slb.com/Display.cfm?Term=float shoe
http://www.glossary.oilfield.slb.com/Display.cfm?Term=leakoff test

http://www.glossary.oilfield.slb.com/default.cfm

 

[Zorkorist]

The one thing that is clear is that the Blow Out Preventor, failed to function.

Thanks for your response.

My brother is an oil man, and he calls this a catastrophe.

-John

 

[RedCOMET]

The only thing that should be comming up the pipe is mud, or gas...

Wouldn't, shouldn't rubber raise an alarm?

-John

Well, its late and my last post is filled with a few grammar and spelling error.

Short answer...depends on what the current phase of the operation.

If they are drilling in open hole, then no. If they are drilling through float collars, and casing shoes after they just drilled out freshly cemented casing, then... yes, they should see rubber and other non-rock like stuff at the surface.

 

[Zorkorist]

I can't imagine that Deep Horizon was drilling through any one elses hole... if that is what you are saying.

Brand new hole, 5,000 foot down in the Gulf of Mexico.

-John