Reports of a large oil spill started coming in Sunday, following the sinking of Transocean Ltd.’s semi-submersible oil rig Deep Horizon. As the rig was under contract to the petroleum giant BP, the company is taking some of the responsibility for dealing with the spill, alongside the U.S. Coast Guard.
The U.S. Coast Guard has estimated that the oil spill near the sunken rig is leaking 1,000 barrels of oil a day at roughly 5,000 feet below sea level. The oil spill has been measured as emerging 1,500 feet from where the Deep Horizon rig sank.
The U.S. Coast Guard is doing its best to stop the oil from reaching the coast, as well as monitoring the area in jeopardy. Efforts are also being made to clear away the oil that has come to the surface of the water.
“Our response plan is focused on quickly securing the source of the subsurface oil emanating from the well, clean the oil on the surface of the water, and keeping the response well offshore,” said Incident Commander and Federal On Scene Coordinator Rear Adm. Mary Landry on the Coast Guard’s official website.
The Transocean rig was doing work for BP when it caught fire, sank and started spilling thousands of gallons of oil into the Gulf of Mexico near the Louisiana coast. BP is being held responsible for the oil that is leaking into the ocean and will have to relinquish funds to assist with the clean-up.
Transocean has 138 other rigs that can be contracted and utilized by different companies, such as BP, Exxon, and Royal Dutch Shell.
Deep Horizon caught fire on Tuesday leading to the disappearance of 11 people, nine of whom were Transocean employees and two others from another company. Those missing have not yet been confirmed dead, and their names have not been released.
The oil rig sank into the ocean Thursday, with missing persons unaccounted for. Transocean Ltd. has since posted a statement on the company website expressing gratitude for the support the company received in the rescue effort.
“I would once again like to express our gratitude to the U.S. Coast Guard, BP and everyone involved for their exhaustive search and rescue efforts, despite this very sad outcome,” stated Transocean’s President Steven L. Newman in a press release.
The U.S. Coast Guard has estimated that the oil spill near the sunken rig is leaking 1,000 barrels of oil a day at roughly 5,000 feet below sea level. The oil spill has been measured as emerging 1,500 feet from where the Deep Horizon rig sank.
The U.S. Coast Guard is doing its best to stop the oil from reaching the coast, as well as monitoring the area in jeopardy. Efforts are also being made to clear away the oil that has come to the surface of the water.
“Our response plan is focused on quickly securing the source of the subsurface oil emanating from the well, clean the oil on the surface of the water, and keeping the response well offshore,” said Incident Commander and Federal On Scene Coordinator Rear Adm. Mary Landry on the Coast Guard’s official website.
The Transocean rig was doing work for BP when it caught fire, sank and started spilling thousands of gallons of oil into the Gulf of Mexico near the Louisiana coast. BP is being held responsible for the oil that is leaking into the ocean and will have to relinquish funds to assist with the clean-up.
Transocean has 138 other rigs that can be contracted and utilized by different companies, such as BP, Exxon, and Royal Dutch Shell.
Deep Horizon caught fire on Tuesday leading to the disappearance of 11 people, nine of whom were Transocean employees and two others from another company. Those missing have not yet been confirmed dead, and their names have not been released.
The oil rig sank into the ocean Thursday, with missing persons unaccounted for. Transocean Ltd. has since posted a statement on the company website expressing gratitude for the support the company received in the rescue effort.
“I would once again like to express our gratitude to the U.S. Coast Guard, BP and everyone involved for their exhaustive search and rescue efforts, despite this very sad outcome,” stated Transocean’s President Steven L. Newman in a press release.
