Monday, May 3, 2010

Despite plan, no fire booms on hand UPDATED

More damning evidence of the botched response to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.  Mobile Register reporter Ben Raines has been covering this unfolding disaster since the explosion, fire and sinking of the Transocean mobile drilling unit late last month.  In today's news, Raines reports that, despite a well-developed and tested plan, officials didn't have a single fire boom on hand at the time of the spill:


But in order to conduct a successful test burn eight days after the Deepwater Horizon well began releasing massive amounts of oil into the Gulf, officials had to purchase one from a company in Illinois.

When federal officials called, Elastec/American Marine, shipped the only boom it had in stock, Jeff Bohleber, chief financial officer for Elastec, said today.

At federal officials' behest, the company began calling customers in other countries and asking if the U.S. government could borrow their fire booms for a few days, he said.


WTF? You have a plan in place since 1994, you have a tried and true process for executing it, and you're just thinking about getting the equipment you need a week after the event? Who was in charge?

Remember the "test burn" federal officials first talked about eight days after the well began spewing oil? Well, since they didn't even have a single piece of the boom on hand, and since their source had only one boom in stock, it pretty much means that a "test burn" was all they could do.

In the days after the Deepwater Horizon sank, US Coast Guard Rear Admiral Mary Landry said that the response team had all the assets and equipment it needed. We now know that this was a false statement.

We also know, from interviews Raines conducted with Ron Gouget, former NOAA response coordinator, and Mr. Bohleber linked in the story above, that the Obama regime's claims that the in-situ burn procedure serves as a "last resort" are false.

Extra Point: That is, unless you don't have the equipment. Then it's pretty much a last resort, ain't it?

UPDATE: Well, well, well.  Via Jammie Wearing Fool, guess who received the most money from British Petroleum in the 2008 election cycle? 

5 comments :

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harsharose said...

Oh no! This is definitely not what we wanted to hear. Despite having a plan in place, it seems there were no fire booms on hand when they were urgently needed. This is a serious issue that demands an immediate resolution.
Fire booms play a crucial role in containing and controlling fires, especially in situations where time is of the essence. It is disappointing to see a lack of preparedness in such a critical area.
It's now crucial for the responsible authorities to thoroughly evaluate the reasons behind this oversight. Whether it was a miscalibrated inventory or an oversight in the procurement process, steps must be taken to prevent a recurrence.
The safety and well-being of the community should always be the top priority. We hope that this incident serves as a wake-up call to invest in better emergency response systems and adequate resources. Swift action needs to be taken to ensure that in the event of another emergency, the necessary tools are readily available. Let's all work together to rectify this situation and prioritize the safety of our community.
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asher said...


This headline suggests that despite having a plan in place, there were no fire booms available when needed. The use of "UPDATED" indicates that the information has been recently updated or revised. To enhance the review, you could provide more details about the context, such as the location, the reason fire booms were needed, and any consequences of not having them available. best personal injury attorney in virginia

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