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The mast of the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig stands intact shortly after the on-board explosion in the Gulf of Mexico. The explosion took place on the rig shortly before 10 p.m. while it was stationed roughly 50 miles off the Louisiana coast. After 100 days of the disaster, look back the explosion that started what has been called one of the worst oil spills in history.![Deepwater Disaster]()
On April 20, the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig caught fire, burned for two days and then sank into 5,000 feet of water in the Gulf of Mexico. The disaster left 11 men dead, while oil continues to leak into the ocean.![Deepwater Horizon Before]()
The rig belongs to Transocean, the world’s biggest offshore drilling contractor. The rig was originally contracted through 2013 to BP and was working on BP’s Macondo exploration well when the fire broke out. The rig costs about $500,000 per day to contract. The full drilling spread with helicopters and support vessels and other services,will cost closer to $1,000,000 per day to operate in the course of drilling for oil and gas. The rig cost about $350,000,000 to build in 2001 and would cost at least double that to replace today.![Deepwater Disaster]()
The fire aboard the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig burned through the drilling mast, toppling it over. The explosion is believed to be caused by a blowout, in which natural gas or oil forces its way up a well pipe and smashes the equipment.![Deepwater Disaster]()
April 21: A U.S.Coast Guard MH-65C dolphin rescue helicopter and crew document the fire aboard the mobile offshore drilling unit Deepwater Horizon, while searching for survivors off the Louisiana coast.![Deepwater Disaster]()
April 21: Fire boat response crews battle the blazing remnants of the offshore oil rig Deepwater Horizon off the coast of Louisiana. Crews were fighting the fire 16 hours later, the U.S. Coast Guard said.![Deepwater Disaster]()
April 21: Fire boat response crews battle the blazing remnants of the off shore oil rig Deepwater Horizon, off Louisiana. Officials from Transocean, the owners of the rig, say crews were doing routine work before the explosion and there were no signs of trouble.![Deepwater Disaster]()
April 21: Fire boat response crews battle the blazing remnants of the off shore oil rig Deepwater Horizon, off Louisiana. A Coast Guard MH-65C dolphin rescue helicopter and crew document the fire aboard the mobile offshore drilling unit Deepwater Horizon, while searching for survivors. Multiple Coast Guard helicopters, planes and cutters responded to rescue the Deepwater Horizon's 126-person crew.![Deepwater Disaster]()
April 21: Fire boat response crews battle the blazing remnants of the off shore oil rig Deepwater Horizon, off the Louisiana coast.![Deepwater Disaster]()
April 22: The Deepwater Horizon drilling rig is sitting quite low in the water on its second morning ablaze. The first signs of the fuel and oil slick are forming.![Deepwater Disaster]()
The Deepwater Horizon drilling rig is 400 feet by 250 feet, roughly twice the size of a football field, according to Transocean's website. The column of boiling black smoke rose hundreds of feet over the Gulf of Mexico.![Deepwater Disaster]()
Of the 126 workers aboard the rig, 115 were accounted for by April 22, when the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig finally sank into the ocean. 11 workers were still unaccounted for at the time the rig sank, they have since been pronounced dead.![Deepwater Disaster]()
April 22: The Deepwater Horizon mobile drilling rig burned for 36 hours before sinking into the Gulf of Mexico.Deepwater Horizon Explosion
It's been 100 days since the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig caught fire. Look back on the explosion that left 11 dead and caused the worst oil spill in U.S. history.
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