The oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico 2010 became the target for Tropical Storm Bonnie as it pulled from the Bahamas Thursday . Oil spill containment and cleanup was brought to a standstill. BP was waiting for official word from Thad Allen, the federal director of the spill response about whether drill rigs, oil containment ships and support vessels would have to evacuate. Better weather could have to return before a final effort to kill the well is attempted. But the feds are confident, according to Allen, the storm will not force them to disconnect the oil spill containment cap that has stanched the flow from the ruptured well.
Tropical Storm Bonnie puts hold on oil spill response
Forecasters at the U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami said the storm system could become Tropical Storm Bonnie later Thursday and reach the Gulf of Mexico by Saturday. The Associated Press reports that a relief well to permanently seal the ruptured well was nearly complete before work on it was stopped. Crews had planned to spend Wednesday and Thursday reinforcing with cement the last few feet of the relief well that could be used to pump mud to the gusher and kill it once and for all. Two more weeks could pass before they can resume the effort to kill the well if Tropical Storm Bonnie forces an evacuation. BP’s timetable called for finishing the relief well by the end of July and plugging the blown-out well by early August.
Static kill postponed until relief well is complete
Another option being considered to plug the BP oil leak called is called a “static kill”. The New York Times reports that to permanently stop the flow of oil and gas, a static kill is performed by pumping heavy drilling mud to the well via the blowout preventer. A static kill would only start following the final casing was installed in the relief well, to reduce the risk of damage to the relief well if something went wrong. If the static kill works as advertised, the relief well will still be needed to confirm the well has been killed. If the results from the static kill are ambiguous, though, it would then take at least various days, and possibly several weeks, to permanently shut the flow from the bad well by pumping mud down the relief well.
Oil spill cap performance breeds confidence
The government has given BP the go-ahead to leave the oil spill containment cap in place as Tropical Storm Bonnie approaches. Bloomberg reports that Allen said he had “growing confidence” within the data from the well, ruling out a potential leak from keeping the cap on. As outlined by BP’s site, steadily increasing pressure readings show that oil and gas is not escaping from other parts of the well. Each day that goes by with pressure holding increases the level of confidence in the cap, said a BP official.
Unemployed Americans feeling tossed around
google.com/hostednews/ap/article
nytimes.com
bloomberg.com
