Deep Horizon Oil Blast Research Paper

Oil Rigs provide today’s world with the energy needed to continue. On April 20, 2010, the Deep Horizon Oil Rig, drilling at the Macondo Well forty-one miles off the coast of Louisiana, exploded causing much devastation. The blast, that affected many, was caused due to carelessness by workers on the rig. The havoc caused by the Deep Horizon Oil Rig Blast affected normal life for months. The large amount of oil released into the ocean had negative short and long term effects on aquatic and human life. The Deep Water Oil Rig Blast contaminated the Gulf of Mexico’s marine life, affecting human lives and jobs, and causing economic destruction. On April 19, 2010, a day before the tragic incident, workers on the Deep Horizon Oil Rig did not …show more content…
As the leak continued to spread into the water, numerous attempts of containment failed. The first attempt to contain the leak occurred two weeks after the first explosion. It failed when crystals formed inside the metal dome and caused concern that it would float away. The second attempted happened a week after the first failed attempt. As did the first attempt, the second attempt came short of the goal. About three months after the start of the leakage of oil, BP oil installed a cap that successfully ended the leak. (Symington) Although the flow of oil was completely shut off, many people and animals were still being affected. The oil reached 1,250 square miles of ocean floor, contaminating every inch. The estimated total of at least two hundred gallons of crude oil reached all five states that border the Gulf of Mexico, but Louisiana’s coast and coastal wildlife witnessed the most ecological damage. Dead dolphins were found along with over 800,000 dead birds, all exposed to leaked BP oil. Many sea turtles found dead in the waters. (“BP Oil Disaster”) About 8.3 million oysters were contaminated and lost