On Tuesday April 20, 2010, the United States experienced one of its largest oil spills in history. An exploratory oil rig, identified as the Deepwater Horizon, was in the process of sealing off a pipe they had drilled about three miles into the ocean’s floor. Due to shortcuts taken, and in order to save time and money, standard procedures were not adhered to which caused highly flammable gases to discharge out of the pipe and onto the oil rig (Eley, 2010). Eleven workers lost their lives and over 4.9 million barrels of oil would eventually leak into the Gulf of Mexico. This would be the beginning of a very complex response and recovery mission as well as a political firestorm.
A rig explosion, oil leaking into the waters of the Gulf of Mexico, and leaks from riser pipes were just the beginning of the challenges ahead for responders. The Deepwater Horizon oil rig was located approximately 41 miles off the coast of Louisiana and sunk two days after the explosion (Giles, 2012, p. 19). The coastlines along Louisiana, Alabama, Mississippi, and Florida were in direct range to receive the massive amounts of oil that continued to pour into the coastal waters. The governors from each state impacted by the oil spill declared State of Emergency Disasters and requested federal resources and assistance to combat the oil threatening their coast lines.
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A boom is used to deflect oil to places where it can be collected and removed (Giles, 2012, p. 8). The booms were being strategically placed under the guidance of the Cast Guard and others who had experience in cleaning oil spills, however, Governor Jindal and Alabama Governor Bob Riley felt as if the booms were not being well placed and demanded they be placed in areas they saw fit. In order to satisfy the governors, President Obama ordered Admiral Allen to place the booms at the locations they requested (Eley, 2010, p.