Deepwater joint investigation board concludes 5th day in 4th session of hearings

HOUSTON - The Deepwater Horizon joint investigation concluded the fifth day of the fourth session of hearings Friday into the circumstances surrounding the explosion, fire, pollution and sinking of the Mobile Offshore Drilling Unit Deepwater Horizon, with multiple loss of life in the Gulf of Mexico on April 20, 2010. 

The joint investigation has the powers of both convening agencies, the United States Coast Guard (USCG) and the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement (BOEM), and is co-chaired and staffed by representatives of both agencies. For the public hearing, the joint investigation is following the policies and procedures for a U.S Coast Guard Marine Board of Investigation contained in 46 Code of Federal Regulations Part 4 and USCG policy (available on the joint investigation Web site: www.deepwaterinvestigation.com ).  The facts collected at this hearing, along with the lead investigators' conclusions and recommendations will be forwarded to Coast Guard Headquarters and BOEM for approval. Once approved, the final investigative report will be made available to the public and the media. No analysis or conclusions will be presented during the hearing. 

The joint investigation is conducting the hearings in sessions.  Session one was held May 11-12, 2010, and investigated the circumstances surrounding the fire, explosion, pollution and sinking of the MODU.  The second session was held May 26-29, 2010, with the focus on gathering information on the MODU's materiel condition, crew qualifications, emergency preparedness, and casualty timeline. The third session of hearings was held July 19-23, 2010, with the focus on the "how" and the "why" (which might also be considered the "technical verification" phase).    

The fourth session of hearings began Monday and continued through Friday.  As part of the fourth session, testimony Friday began at 8 a.m. and continued until 3:45 p.m.  Testimony was given by two witnesses.  Mark Hafle, a BP drilling engineer, was scheduled to appear but Mitchell Lansden, Hafle's attorney, stated before the board that Hafle was citing his Fifth Amendment right to not testify.   

The witnesses Friday were: 

1. Brett Cocales, BP, drilling engineer

2. Merrick Kelley, BP, subsea engineer

It is expected that there will be at least one more session of this joint investigation.  Subsequent proceedings will examine the recovery, examination, analysis and evaluation of the critical drilling and blow out preventer equipment.  At this time, a fifth session is tentatively scheduled to take place October  4-8, 2010.  The location has not yet been determined but more specific location information will be posted on the Deepwater Investigation Web site as it becomes available.

Witness lists, which are subject to change, can be accessed by clicking here.  Transcripts of hearings will be available on the Deepwater Investigation Web site approximately three weeks after the conclusion of each set of hearings.  Documents discussed during the hearings will be available when the final report is released in January 2011.

For Deepwater Horizon joint investigation information:www.deepwaterinvestigation.com

For Deepwater Horizon oil spill response information: www.restorethegulf.gov

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