When the Deepwater Horizon exploded numerous workers suffered serious personal injuries and 11 were killed. The same accident set in motion one of the worst environmental disasters in U.S. history.
Deepwater Horizon Burns on April 20, 2010
We have heard testimony and reports regarding safety measures that were ignored and shortcuts that were taken by BP in order to maximize profits. And, according to the New York Times and other media sources, we are now learning that not only did BP ignore certain safety protocols prior to the explosion but the Deepwater Horizon’s safety and emergency system was not even fully operational at the time of the accident and spill.
Mike Williams, the rig’s chief electronics technician on the Deepwater Horizon at the time of the explosion told a federal panel recently that “general safety alarm was habitually set to ‘inhibited’ to avoid waking up the crew with late-night sirens and emergency lights.”
According to the Times, it is unknown if this would have saved the lives of the 11 workers killed but the lack of warning system appeared to have hampered evacuation efforts once the explosion took place.
