The BP oil spill of April 20th, 2010 was the worst offshore oil spill in United States history. Almost 210 million gallons of oil spilled into the Gulf of Mexico which disrupted wildlife and Gulf residences, and devastated fishing and sea-related businesses in the area. It all started when an oil rig called Deepwater Horizons exploded and sank into the ocean killing eleven workers on the platform. The oil gushed into the Gulf until mid-July when a temporary cap was fitted onto the leak, and heavy mud and cement were consequently pushed down into the well to permanently stop the flow. The well, however, was not officially declared “dead” until a relief well was drilled and the ruptured well could finally be sealed from the bottom ensuring that nothing else could come out of it.
As for the company that is responsible for this mess, British Petroleum, things are also not going so well. After the explosion and many awkward public gaffes, their once mighty and giant oil stock began to take a nosedive. So far the company has payed over $9.5 billion in cleanup costs and has an additional $20 billion put away for payments to any and all victims of the disaster. None of this, though, is worse than the company’s reputation as being environmentally friendly being totally destroyed. This may never come back, even though the money could.
Sources:
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/us_gulf_oil_spill
http://response.restoration.noaa.gov/
http://www.geoplatform.gov/gulfresponse/