US authorities seize BP's blowout preventer

[Little Star]

Source: Telegraph.co.uk By Roland Gribben

There was a touch of legal drama in the Gulf of Mexico oil disaster yesterday. The 350 tonne, 50 feet high blowout preventer that should have prevented the explosion in the BP oil well, was effectively placed under "arrest" by US authorities.

Admiral Thad Allen, the retired Coast Guard commander in overall charge of the operation, declared that the preventer "will be taken into custody" and become part of the "evidence material that's been required by the joint investigative team".

His comments reflected another shift in the direction of a tragedy that has claimed 11 lives, cost BP chief executive Tony Hayward his job, BP and its shareholders at least $50bn (£32.3bn), diminished the credibility of President Obama, disrupted fishing and tourism, and threatened the environment around the Gulf states.


Read more: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/energy/oilandgas/7983179/US-authorities-seize-BPs-blowout-preventer.html

[jaxx]

1. Just a funny aside:

WaPo showed the capping stack and called it the BOP in the caption...

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/09/04/AR2010090400596.html

Two very different things. ooops!

Capping Stack


BOP onboard the Q4000

[howaboutme]

2. I'm surprised BP didn't hold onto it

I'm actually surprised that our corporate owned government didn't give BP carte blanche right to retain the device and do their own investigation and cover-up the result. It may still happen. There is little in Congress or the administration, regardless of Parties, that is done without Wall St or US Chamber of Commerce concurrence.

[jaxx]

3. I guess you were wrong.

[Little Star]

4. Yep. I was surprised too.

Now lets see what our government does next.....

Fingers crossed.

[another saigon]

6. or what the government does not do

Our government (over site) works best for the oligarchy being passive.

[bherrera]

7. Your surprise surprises me

I am surprised by your surprise. I am not in the USA, but I have followed this incident with a lot of interest. First, we should clarify the device doesn't belong to BP, it belongs to the owner of the Deep Water Horizon. Second, it has been clear for a long time the government is in charge, they have retired Admiral Thad Allen commanding the response effort. Third, this is potentially a criminal case. Nothing I have seen in the news, nor read in the documents (and they are indeed available in the response and investigation websites if you bother to read them), tells me there is any collusion or conspiracy whatsoever in this situation. The Obama administration, unlike the Bush administration, is quite honest and forthright, and it has been quite efficient in the handling of this unfortunate disaster.

[howaboutme]

13. Call me Mr Cynical

The USA has been bought and paid for by corporate plutocrats and unfortunately they have their hooks into both Parties. Yes Obama is a giant step from Bush but a far cry from FDR. We need leadership that will take the corporate and banking interests firmly to task as a tough school master would take an unruly class.

We hear the President speak and Congress hold hearings and pontificate on everything from executive pay to the economic crash to BP. In the end the banksters and corporations take a public whipping on CSPAN but rarely if ever will they face any criminal actions, or the justice meted out to some average American caught doing a petty victimless crime.

We need the pendulum to swing from appeasement to corporate vigilantes intent on reigning in their power.

[dixiegrrrrl]

19. A plausible scenario:

Government "takes over" the evidence and investigation, eventually absolves BP of harm
OR
finds culpability and imposes a teeeensy fine.
BP, having been cleared, either way, is now free to grab more lucrative contracts.

Same as it always was.

[The Flaming Red Head]

20. Pardon me bherrera

But gawd your argument is dumb and naive and you couldn't possibly be following this and say that the government and BP isn't busy covering up everything they can with corexit and disinformation.

[jpak]

17. This IS a cover-up. They switched the failed BOP with a fake so Obama could let BP off the hook

it's all true

:evilgrin:

[LawnKorn]

5. It has been taken to an undisclosed, secret NASA location

It has been taken to an undisclosed, secret NASA location where Cheney and Halliburton will examine it and absolve themselves of any culpability.

[bherrera]

8. Funny. Maybe it was area 51?

They may have small green aliens trying to modify it in Area 51.

Seriously, it is evident Halliburton has very little liability in this case. They have clear documentation they advised BP the cementing of the oil well was likely to fail due to the short number of pipe centralizers. The main responsible parties appear to be BP and the owner of the Deepwater Horizon oil rig.

[IndianaGreen]

9. Area 51

If found to be defective, I wonder how many blowout preventers by the same manufacturer are defective.

[rasputin1952]

11. LOL...GMTA...

:hi:

[rasputin1952]

10. Area 51 !!11!

:tinfoilhat:

:D

[Little Star]

12. LOL

[anachro1]

14. They got there too early

BP probably hoped to take this bit of evidence to the deepest part of the ocean and drop it to the bottom.

[dipsydoodle]

15. Seize sounds a bit over the top

Before they'd even started bringing it to the surface they'd said it was going to be placed under government control for forensic tests whatever and as evidence.

[valerief]

16. I guess the govt will destroy it like it's a torture tape. nt

[L0oniX]

18. HLS wants the blowout preventer ...possible links to Al Qaeda.

[Heywood J]

21. We'll all be forced to remove our blowout preventers when we want to fly! (NT)

Or we'll be restricted to "no blowout preventers above 200 tons and 30 feet, must be placed inside a plastic baggie".