BP Successfully Cuts Busted Oil Pipe, Will Attempt to Cap
According to Fox News, BP’s underwater robots have successfully sheared through the blown-out pipe that is spewing oil into the Gulf and the company will attempt to place a cap on the gusher in the “next couple of hours,” Coast Guard Adm. Thad Allen said.
BP used giant shears to slice off a pipe Thursday in the company’s latest bid to contain the Gulf of Mexico oil, but the cut was irregular and placing the cap will now be more challenging, Allen said.
BP turned to the shears after a diamond-tipped saw became stuck in the pipe halfway through the job, yet another frustrating delay in six weeks of the Gulf of Mexico spill.
The cap will be lowered and sealed over the coming hours, Allen said. It won’t be known how much oil BP can siphon to a tanker on the surface until the cap is fitted, but the irregular cut means it won’t fit as snug as officials had hoped.
“We’ll have to see when we get the containment cap on it just how effective it is,” Allen said. “It will be a test and adapt phase as we move ahead, but it’s a significant step forward.”
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