April 20th, 2024
On this day, an oil rig run by British Petroleum (BP) exploded in the Gulf of Mexico about 50 miles off the Louisiana coast, resulting in the largest offshore oil spill in US history. The fire and explosions on the platform killed 11 workers and injured 17. The rig eventually sank, and the damage to the drilling equipment caused a constant flow of oil from the well directly into the gulf. Several attempts to stop the flow were unsuccessful, primarily because of the difficulty in working at such depths. At the height of the disaster, the well was pouring as much as 60,000 barrels of oil per day into the Gulf of Mexico.
Source: www.britannica.com/event/Deepwater-Horizon-oil-spill-of-2010
