Managing Risk – Real Cases

CMIE 6213
Faculty of Engineering and Built Engineering
Lecturer: Prof Dr Dzuraidah Abd Wahab
Deepwater Horizon – BP Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill

• On April 20, 2010, the oil drilling rig Deepwater Horizon, operating in
the Macondo Prospect in the Gulf of Mexico, exploded and sank
resulting in the death of 11 workers on the Deepwater Horizon and
the largest spill of oil in the history of marine oil drilling operations.
• 4 million barrels of oil flowed from the damaged Macondo well over
an 87-day period, before it was finally capped on July 15, 2010. [1]
• The Deepwater Horizon rig, owned and operated by offshore-oil-
drilling company Transocean and leased by oil company BP
• On the night of April 20 a surge of natural gas blasted through a
concrete core recently installed by a contractor in order to seal the
well for later use.
• It was reported that a similar incident had occurred on a BP-owned
rig in the Caspian Sea in September 2008. Both cores were likely too
weak to withstand pressure because they were composed of
a concrete mixture that used nitrogen gas to accelerate curing.
• The volume of oil escaping the damaged well—originally estimated by
BP to be about 1,000 barrels per day; according to U.S. officials it was
more than 60,000 barrels per day.

• Although BP attempted to activate the rig’s blowout preventer (BOP),

a fail-safe mechanism designed to close the channel through which oil
was drawn, the device malfunctioned. [2]
Aftermath And Impact

• Economic prospects in the Gulf Coast states were dire, as the spill affected
many of the industries upon which residents depended.
• More than a third of federal waters in the gulf were closed to fishing at the
peak of the spill, due to fears of contamination.
• A moratorium on offshore drilling was enacted, left an estimated 8,000–
12,000 temporarily unemployed.
• Tourism industry struggled supplement their incomes.

BP created a $20 billion compensation fund for those affected by the spill.
• By the next year, the company had lost almost a quarter of its market
value and over $40 billion in costs associated with clean-up and
recovery.

• In addition, a study published in the journal Nature 2020 found that

fish in the Gulf of Mexico continued to show evidence of
contamination by polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs).
 OUTCOMES

• 11 workers killed and 17 injured by the explosion on the Deepwater Horizon oil
rig

• About 1,300 miles (2,100 km) of the U.S. Gulf Coast covered in oil

• Massive harm done to wildlife in and around the Gulf of Mexico, including
the deaths of an estimated 800,000 birds and 65,000 turtles

• Payment by oil company BP of $65 billion in compensation to people

impacted by the spill

• Release of an estimated 134 million to 206 million gallons of oil into the Gulf of
Mexico
Construction disaster

• One of the worst construction accidents in U.S. history took place at Willow Island,
West Virginia in 1978.
• While dozens worked on a cooling tower, the scaffolding they stood on suddenly
collapsed, causing 51 workers to fall to their deaths.
• Subsequent OSHA investigations proved that a series of errors, short cuts and
accidents was responsible for the scaffolding’s collapse.

- In their haste to finish the project, contractors attached the scaffold to concrete that
hadn’t had time to cure.
- Bolts were missing and the existing bolts were of poor quality.
- Only one access ladder was available, restricting the worker’s ability to escape.
- An elaborate concrete hoisting system was modified without proper engineering
review. [3]
• The Bright Sparklers Fireworks
• occurred in Sungai Buluh, Selangor on 7 May
1991.
• Bright Sparklers caught fire and caused a
huge explosion
• Twenty six people were killed and over a
hundred people injured in the disaster,
damaging over 200 residential properties.
Date 7 May 1991; 29 years ago

Time 3.45 pm MST

Location Sungai Buloh, Selangor, Malaysia

Also known as Hiroshima of Sungai Buloh

Cause Testing on new fireworks

Deaths 26

Non-fatal injuries 83

Property damage MYR1 million

• The Bright Sparklers' tragedy was a result of an accumulation of errors in a period
estimated to be 16 years. The errors accumulated due to the breaching of the statutory
regulations, rules, laws and procedures by the Sparklers Company's management.
• Also the errors accumulated due to lack of communication between the authorities, due to
lack of understanding of the relevant laws by the customs department, lack of following-up
by the inspection body, the department of machineries and factory, and lack of
enforcement of law.
• The inspection authority did not benefit from the Bhopal disaster. The company and the
authority failed to learn from the warnings such as the fire, fire-explosion accidents and
from the complaints.
• Consequently, fireworks manufacturing was banned in the country [4]
• The management of the Sparklers Company and the authorities failed to learn
from the fire and explosion accidents.

• The company's management violated the country rules, regulations and laws and
the standard codes.

• The authorities who have direct contact with the company's activities failed to
enforce the law and to follow-up the recommended actions.
Lessons learned from Bright Sparklers disaster and international
experience:
• Respect and adherence to the country regulations, laws are obligatory
and of paramount necessity for the continuation of any organization's
business legally.
• The application of the standard regulations and specification during
design, installation, manufacturing,
References
1. https://www.epa.gov/enforcement/deepwater-horizon-bp-gulf-
mexico-oil-spill
2. https://www.britannica.com/event/Deepwater-Horizon-oil-spill
3. https://www.amerisure.com/Blog/Amerisure-Blog/Four-
construction-accidents-that-shook-the-world.aspx
4. Ibrahim M. ShalufFakharul-razi AhmadunSa’ari MustaphaAini Mat
SaidRashid Sharif, (2002),"Bright Sparklers fire andexplosions: the
lessons learned", Disaster Prevention and Management: An
International Journal, Vol. 11 Iss 3 pp. 214 – 221