Deepwater Horizon Oil Well Accident: Terrible Consequences of Institutional Negligence
There was no major change in the routine of the Deepwater Horizon oil well that day. The workers of the well were performing their duties regularly. At the end of his shift, a worker who had been relieved of his duties was engaged in a video call with his wife. In fact, it was his daily work. Everything is normal. There is nothing wrong with that. But even then there was a discrepancy in the calculations. His personal conversation was interrupted by the screams of a junior worker. He left the video call and walked out of the office to find out what happened.
There he discovered the junior worker screaming with a walkie-talkie in his hand, his clothes wet with oil and his curious gaze on the frightened face for a moment. The momentary curiosity was interrupted by the "May Day, May Day!" Shouting. “Hey hey! What is this stupid junior doing? ” He ran away. He snatched the walkie-talkie from his hand. Scolded him. The ‘May Day’ signal has to be announced in the face of any serious danger or accident. And this junior is shouting 'May Day' without understanding anything!
But his rebuke did not last long. Earlier, a huge explosion ripped through the walls of the office. The huge machinery in the vicinity began to crumble like a house of cards. Even a few seconds ago, where the worker was standing and reprimanding, now there is nothing but a ruined pile and a blazing flame. This scene is then the image of the whole Deepwater Horizon. This deep sea oil well, which has been in operation for 9 long years, was destroyed in a few minutes on April 20, 2010.This accident of that day made us witness one of the most terrible well catastrophes in the history of the world.
*Deepwater Horizon oil well
About three-quarters of the earth's surface is surrounded by seawater. Millions of years of unknown stories are hidden in the vastness of the chest of the sea. This story is only revealed to those who wander in the bosom of the sea like a great adventurer, lost themselves in its depths and rediscovered. Encouraged by this mantra, people have been engaged in trying to extract the treasures of the sea since ancient times.
In addition to the thousands of biodiversity in the depths of the sea, there are various resources hidden. Throughout the ages, people have been trying to extract those resources by utilizing the advancement of technology and science. With the help of sophisticated equipment, people have been able to extract mineral resources from thousands of feet deep, making the impossible possible.
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An example is the Deepwater Horizon oil well located in the heart of the Gulf of Mexico. The oil well began operations in the Gulf in 2001 under the auspices of Trans-Ocean, an oil drilling company leased by British Petroleum (BP).The oil well, located at an average depth of about 4,993 feet above the surface, is located in the area of the Makondo oil field in the Mississippi Canyon. The oil field is located about 7 kilometers from the US state of Louisiana. According to the survey, the depth of this well is about 16,000 feet. Extreme pressure exists at such depths of the ocean, making it extremely risky to do anything.
Extracting oil from various deep sea wells around the world, including deepwater horizons, is a challenge. With the help of state-of-the-art fifth generation technology, it was possible to tackle that challenge at Deepwater Horizon quite efficiently. It was shut down in July 2010 after one of the world's largest oil wells crashed in 2001.