Judge Rules CSB Has Jurisdiction Over Deepwater Horizon Accident

A federal judge has ruled that the U.S. Chemical Safety Board has jurisdiction to investigate the 2010 Deepwater Horizon accident in the Gulf of Mexico.

A Congressional committee had asked the board, which typically investigates accidents at chemical plants and refineries, to examine the oil-rig explosion and accident, which killed 11 workers and triggered the largest offshore oil spill in U.S. history.

But Transocean Ltd., which owned the drilling rig that sank during the explosion, refused to honor subpoenas issued by the board in 2010 and 2011 for documents and employee testimony. It argued that the board lacked jurisdiction over offshore oil spills and that most of the documents had been turned over to other government agencies.

U.S. District Judge Lee Rosenthal disagreed with Transocean, ruling late Monday that it had to honor the subpoenas because legislation that created the board, known as the CSB, didn't bar it from looking at all offshore incidents. He noted that the investigation focused on the explosion on the rig, not the ensuing oil spill. The House Energy and Commerce Committee had asked the board to compare the Deepwater Horizon disaster to a lethal 2005 explosion at what was then BP PLC's Texas City, Texas refinery.

Transocean didn't immediately respond to requests for comment on Tuesday.

"This ruling greatly supports the CSB's ongoing investigation and will enable CSB investigators to access critical information that might have otherwise been unavailable," the board said in a statement.

The board issued a report last July concluding that offshore oil and gas drillers put too much emphasis on issues such as individual worker injuries while neglecting other indicators of danger, such as whether safety equipment is being maintained on schedule.

Copyright (c) 2012 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.

Generated by readers, the comments included herein do not reflect the views and opinions of Rigzone. All comments are subject to editorial review. Off-topic, inappropriate or insulting comments will be removed.

View the original article here

Judge Rules CSB Has Jurisdiction Over Deepwater Horizon Accident

A federal judge has ruled that the U.S. Chemical Safety Board has jurisdiction to investigate the 2010 Deepwater Horizon accident in the Gulf of Mexico.

A Congressional committee had asked the board, which typically investigates accidents at chemical plants and refineries, to examine the oil-rig explosion and accident, which killed 11 workers and triggered the largest offshore oil spill in U.S. history.

But Transocean Ltd., which owned the drilling rig that sank during the explosion, refused to honor subpoenas issued by the board in 2010 and 2011 for documents and employee testimony. It argued that the board lacked jurisdiction over offshore oil spills and that most of the documents had been turned over to other government agencies.

U.S. District Judge Lee Rosenthal disagreed with Transocean, ruling late Monday that it had to honor the subpoenas because legislation that created the board, known as the CSB, didn't bar it from looking at all offshore incidents. He noted that the investigation focused on the explosion on the rig, not the ensuing oil spill. The House Energy and Commerce Committee had asked the board to compare the Deepwater Horizon disaster to a lethal 2005 explosion at what was then BP PLC's Texas City, Texas refinery.

Transocean didn't immediately respond to requests for comment on Tuesday.

"This ruling greatly supports the CSB's ongoing investigation and will enable CSB investigators to access critical information that might have otherwise been unavailable," the board said in a statement.

The board issued a report last July concluding that offshore oil and gas drillers put too much emphasis on issues such as individual worker injuries while neglecting other indicators of danger, such as whether safety equipment is being maintained on schedule.

Copyright (c) 2012 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.

Generated by readers, the comments included herein do not reflect the views and opinions of Rigzone. All comments are subject to editorial review. Off-topic, inappropriate or insulting comments will be removed.

View the original article here

Witness Says Deepwater Horizon Accident Was 'Classic Failure of Management'

NEW ORLEANS - An expert witness for plaintiffs suing BP PLC said the 2010 Deepwater Horizon accident was "a classic failure of management and leadership in BP," at the trial here in Federal District Court over liability for the disaster.

Robert Bea, a University of California Berkeley engineering professor who has worked as a safety consultant for BP starting in 2001, said Tuesday that he sent many warnings to the company's management in the years before the accident about how cost-cutting would hurt the safety of operations.

"It was too lean," Mr. Bea said of BP's operations after it reduced spending.

The testimony came on the second day of the civil trial that will determine the degree of culpability that BP and the other companies have for the accident, which killed 11 workers. On Monday lawyers for BP, drilling contractors Transocean Ltd. (RIG) and Halliburton Corp. (HAL), the federal government, Gulf Coast states and local businesses traded barbs over who was to blame for the explosion that unleashed the worst offshore oil spill in U.S. history.

Mr. Bea also criticized BP's own internal investigation of the Deepwater Horizon incident for failing to investigate management decisions leading up to the accident. Instead, he said, BP's study, known as The Bly Report, focused on the direct cause of the explosion on the drilling rig and the role that equipment and crew on the rig played.

During cross-examination, Mike Brock, a lawyer for BP, tried to challenge the credibility of Mr. Bea's testimony, emphasizing the limits of his expertise and emphasizing the role the companies suing BP played in providing him information for a report he did that was critical of BP's work leading up to the blowout.

"You understood that the plaintiff's legal team was focused on finding documents that hurt BP, not helped BP?" Mr. Brock asked.

Mr. Bea said he and his colleagues "were searching for the truth, the facts."

Mr. Brock also walked Mr. Bea through many efforts the company and its management made over the years to improve its safety operations, including surveying workers about safety operations.

BP has argued that the accident was due to many errors and misjudgments by all of the companies involved in the project, including rig owner Transocean and cement contractor Halliburton.

Other witnesses expected soon include Lamar McKay, chairman and president of BP Americas, and previously recorded depositions of former BP CEO Tony Hayward and Kevin Lacy, the former head of BP's Gulf of Mexico operations.

A second trial, scheduled for the fall, will determine how much oil leaked into the Gulf of Mexico. Together, they will determine the size of fines the companies face under the Clean Water Act, which could total as much as $17.6 billion.

BP, which hired Transocean and Halliburton to work on drilling its well, has said the fines would likely be under $5 billion.

Copyright (c) 2012 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.

Generated by readers, the comments included herein do not reflect the views and opinions of Rigzone. All comments are subject to editorial review. Off-topic, inappropriate or insulting comments will be removed.

View the original article here

Broadway closed at 11th after hit-and-run accident

Font ResizeLocal NewsThe Denver Postdenverpost.comPosted: 12/21/2012 05:37:05 PM MSTDecember 22, 2012 2:26 AM GMTUpdated: 12/21/2012 07:26:34 PM MST

A hit-and run accident shut down Broadway at 11th Avenue just in time for Friday's evening rush hour. Broadway was still closed at 7:15 p.m.

Sonny Jackson, a spokesman for Denver Police Department, said it appears a person ran into the street and was struck by a car just before 5 p.m.

The man was involved in an altercation with people on the sidewalk of Broadway just before he ran into the street.

A vehicle driving south on Broadway struck the man and did not stop.

The victim was taken to the hospital with serious injuries, where he remains in critical condition.

Police are now on the lookout for a silver or grey Honda CRV with front end damage, and a driver-side mirror missing.

Anyone with information about the vehicle's whereabouts can call Denver Police at 720-913-2000.

Denver Police are also cleaning up an investigation of another pedestrian accident nearby at 13th Avenue and Pearl Street.

The victim in that accident suffered minor injuries including a broken leg, and the vehicle that struck the pedestrian remained on scene and is cooperating with investigators.

View the Original article