UPDATE: Diamond saw is stuck...
UPDATE: ROV live video shows them removing the diamond saw from the LMRP. Not good...
UPDATE: ROV live video shows something new going on with the diamond saw, like maybe getting ready to reposition it on the riser...
UPDATE: BP has abandoned the diamond saw clean cut, and will instead try to cut the riser with the giant shear. This seems like risky business, in terms of further deforming the riser.
ORIGINAL POST CONTINUES...
BP has abandoned efforts to "kill" or cap the well from above and is focusing on relief wells as the long term solution and a new "containment cap" system to capture the flow in the interim.
A plan to install a second blow out preventer on top of the failed BOP is "off the table" and the resources staged for that effort have been returned to drilling the second, backup relief well which is once again underway.
Experts speculate that BP obtained new data during the failed "top kill" effort suggesting that the pressures inside the well could cause a complete failure of the crippled BOP or the well casing itself if the flow were cut off, leading to a more catastrophic and uncontrollable spill.
Meanwhile, a new containment effort is underway to install a "cap" atop the failed blow out preventer to capture the flow and pipe it to storage vessels on the surface. This complicated operation, which could take two or three more days to complete, involves shearing away the bent and broken riser to relive stress on the BOP riser connection, then making a finer cut using a diamond "chainsaw." Looking at the photos, the riser is severely deformed and they have little remaining round pipe around which to seal the capture device.
The "top cap" is smaller than the previous "dome" device and has lines to pump in hot water and methanol to keep methane from freezing and clogging the works, which is what caused the "dome" device to fail. If it works, BP says they will be able to capture "most of the oil and gas flow." If that doesn't work, a second "top hat" device has been staged that will not seal as tightly and will allow more of the oil to leak into the ocean, but will enable capture of at least some of the flow.
Once the riser is cut off from the BOP, it is estimated that the flow will increase by as much as 20% until a capture device is secured which could take a few days to complete. Another concern is the approaching hurricane season. If a storm approaches, the drillship will have to untether from the riser and move off the site. It is not clear what happens then, but it's my impression that the oil will simply flow into the sea.
A related effort is underway to use lines attached to the failed BOP manifolds for the "top kill" attempt to capture even more of the flow. BP says this could be in place by mid-June. They are also planning to install a free-standing riser that extends up to approx. 300 feet below sea level. A flexible hose will then be attached from it to a containment vessel. According to BP, this is a long-term option designed to more easily disconnect and reconnect the riser during a hurricane. BP expects the free-standing riser to be in place by late June or early July.
OTHER NEWS:
• Criminal probe: U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder visited the Gulf to coordinate the administration's legal response. DOJ officials met with Attorneys General and U.S. Attorneys for the affected states and districts. AG Holder: the government will "ensure that anyone found responsible for this spill is held accountable. That means enforcing the appropriate civil - and if warranted, criminal - authorities to the full extent of the law."
• Florida beaches: The NOLA Times Picayune reports that oil has been spotted about nine miles off Pensacola beach, and that predicted winds could blow the slick into Florida panhandle beaches.
• Commission: President Obama met with the National Commission on the BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and Offshore Drilling, whose job is to "thoroughly examine the spill and its causes so that we never face such a catastrophe again" according to the President.
RELATED:
• June 1 National Incident Commander press briefing
• June 1 Joint Information Center update
• June 1 BP update
• BP video of diamond saw fitting
• BP Enhancements to LMRP Containment Strategy
• BP 5/31 technical briefing video
• Oil spill nears Florida beaches
• More Gulf fishing areas closed because of creeping oil spill
|
|
Discussing:
- Private equity ownership of hospitals made care riskier for patients, a new study finds (15 replies)
- Kansas man sues Tim Burchett for defamation over false tweets put out following Chiefs Super Bowl parade (2 replies)
- Is tap water safe to drink? CDC report highlights deadly waterborne infections (3 replies)
- Knoxville begins effort grow city’s tree canopy by 2040 (1 reply)
- These businesses say they can’t keep up with consumer demand without immigrant workers. Americans just don’t want the jobs (1 reply)
- TN Republican Rep wants to change TN wetland regulations (6 replies)
- Brick and mortar going too much online? (1 reply)
- Measles is a 'heat-seeking missile' experts warn as Florida outbreak grows (3 replies)
- Begone Bradford Pear trees! (1 reply)
- Is Burchett demented? (3 replies)
- Tennessee Rising! (1 reply)
- Why are prices still so high? Corporate greed, some say (3 replies)
TN Progressive
- Trae Says It Better Than I Can (RoaneViews)
- Malcolm Holcombe has Left the Building (RoaneViews)
- CNN Looks at Tennessee Legislature (RoaneViews)
- It's voting time again. Let's get out the vote. (BlountViews)
- Two Evil Forces At Work in America, Trump is merely a symptom (RoaneViews)
- Winter at the Big Rocks (Whitescreek Journal)
- Maryville Daily Times Home Delivery changing again (BlountViews)
- Amazon facility in Rockford finally opens (BlountViews)
- Share your ideas for the Blount County Comprehensive Plan 2023 (BlountViews)
- Secrets from My Radio Days (Joe Powell)
- Fall 2022 (Whitescreek Journal)
- Mmmm, A Fresh Hot Cup of Joe (Joe Powell)
TN Politics
- Editor’s notebook: Same old Vanderbilt (TN Lookout)
- Velsicol brokering chemicals years after Memphis plant closure (TN Lookout)
- An anniversary for reflection (TN Lookout)
- Remembering the Covenant School victims one year later (TN Lookout)
- The Angry Grandmother observes Lent (TN Lookout)
- John Cole’s Tennessee: High on their own supply (TN Lookout)
Knox TN Today
- Rodney Woods, coaching legend, fired in Kentucky (Knox TN Today)
- Ridgedale principal: ‘It fills our hearts!’ (Knox TN Today)
- 218 property transfers worth $78.39 million (Knox TN Today)
- Cody Gentry is city’s Vision Zero coordinator (Knox TN Today)
- Johnson promoted at MoxCar Marketing (Knox TN Today)
- Everyday Arts is April 6 (Knox TN Today)
- ‘Symphony Soiree’ is sellout (Knox TN Today)
- Workday beginning (Knox TN Today)
- Honey Badger captures Hickory Nut Falls (Knox TN Today)
- Students partner with theatre professionals for ‘King Lear’ (Knox TN Today)
- Comic expo expands with festival atmosphere, after party (Knox TN Today)
- Services today for shoe man Hardy Johnson (Knox TN Today)
Local TV News
- Knox County growth policy plan rejected by Farragut leaders (WATE)
- How the Baltimore bridge collapse could impact East Tennessee (WATE)
- Powell veteran writes a book on his time in the Korean War to recognize those 'who didn't make it back' (WATE)
- Memberships to Ijams Nature Center jump sharply following parking fee announcement (WBIR)
- Sevier County family picking up the pieces after fire destroys home (WATE)
- Morristown breaks ground on new fire station to keep up with rising population (WATE)
- Kamal Hadden back to form for Pro Day following season-ending injury (WATE)
- Popular overlook in Smokies park closed due to road cracks (WBIR)
- Former Jefferson County sheriff, TBI agent David Davenport dies (WBIR)
- KPD: Crash Review Board will look into collision that resulted in injuries to officer, motorist (WBIR)
- Oak Ridge cleanup contractor to offer higher pay after signing new national union agreement (WBIR)
- Health science students to participate in emergency exercise on Roane State's Knox County campus (WBIR)
News Sentinel
State News
- Unemployment falls in Chattanooga to near record low - Chattanooga Times Free Press (Times Free Press)
- From UTC to NFL: Bradley Central grad Jay Person could be next - Chattanooga Times Free Press (Times Free Press)
- The Sweet 16 has provided a litany of heartaches for Vols - Chattanooga Times Free Press (Times Free Press)
- New homebuilding company formed in Chattanooga - Chattanooga Times Free Press (Times Free Press)
Wire Reports
- March 28, 2024 - Baltimore Key Bridge collapse - CNN (US News)
- Protesters interrupt Biden, Obama, Clinton at $25 million New York fundraiser - Reuters (US News)
- Fallen 'Crypto King' Sam Bankman-Fried gets 25 years for fraud - BBC.com (Business)
- Jonathan Diller: Trump attends wake of New York policeman shot on duty - BBC.com (US News)
- Va. Gov. Youngkin arrived like a GOP star, but arena failure clouds legacy - The Washington Post (US News)
- Disney Investor Blackwells Capital Sues The Company As Shareholder Vote Nears Close; Media Giant Calls Allegations “Baseless” And “Desperate” - Deadline (Business)
- What to know about the deadly Rockford, Illinois, stabbing spree - ABC News (US News)
- Apple dismisses Microsoft monopoly comparisons - TechCrunch (Business)
- The fight to flip the House just got harder for Dems. And they have New York to blame. - POLITICO (US News)
- Truth Social slips into the red as Trump Media stock hits turbulence - USA TODAY (Business)
- 'Outrageous': Bernie Sanders has Ozempic demands after study says it costs just $5 per month to manufacture - Fortune (Business)
- Stock market today: S&P 500's latest record closes out best first quarter since 2019 - Yahoo Finance (Business)
- Mega Millions $1.13 billion winner is facing mega tax bill. The amount is staggering. - NJ.com (Business)
- Trump's team cites First Amendment in contesting charges in Georgia election interference case - The Associated Press (US News)
- Watch out Tesla, smartphone builder Xiaomi's SU7 EV offers 434 mile range for under $30k - Electrek.co (Business)
Local Media
Lost Medicaid Funding
Search and Archives
TN Progressive
Nearby:
- Blount Dems
- Herston TN Family Law
- Inside of Knoxville
- Instapundit
- Jack Lail
- Jim Stovall
- Knox Dems
- MoxCarm Blue Streak
- Outdoor Knoxville
- Pittman Properties
- Reality Me
- Stop Alcoa Parkway
Beyond:
- Nashville Scene
- Nashville Post
- Smart City Memphis
- TN Dems
- TN Journal
- TN Lookout
- Bob Stepno
- Facing South