Critic of Offshore Drilling Safety Regulation Helps Run Company that Owns Failed Natural Gas Rig

The executive VP of a company that owns an offshore natural gas rig that suffered a blowout Tuesday is an active critic of stronger offshore drilling regulations.  Though federal officials confirmed the gas flow had stopped on Thursday morning, the accident raises serious concerns about the safety improvements taken since the disaster caused by a blowout three years ago aboard the Deepwater Horizon.

On Tuesday morning in the Gulf of Mexico, the Hercules 265 drilling rig had been drilling a natural gas well and when gas began spewing uncontrollably from the well, the crew of the rig tried to use a blowout preventer to shut down the well’s flow of gas.  This is the same device that failed to close the out-of-control oil well under the Deepwater Horizon, and the blowout preventer under the Hercules 265 also failed to shut down the flow of gas.

Critic of Offshore Drilling Safety Regulation Helps Run Company that Owns Failed Natural Gas Rig