Source: http://wiki.answers.com/Q/How_did_the_Gulf_of_Mexico_oil_spill_happen
There have been hundreds of oil spills in the Gulf of Mexico. The worst-case scenario for the broken and leaking well gushing oil into the Gulf of Mexico would be the loss of the wellhead currently restricting the flow to 5,000 barrels -- or 210,000 gallons per day. April 20, 2010: BP Deepwater Horizon (Macondo Blowout) Oil spill. Blowout causing an explosion caused the collapse of the drilling rig, breaking the piping that connected the drill to the well, 5000 ft below sea level. Oil started gushing into the gulf because with a part that needed to be replaced and they knew that the drill was in that condition but instead of replacing it they went on with the drilling because they did not want to lose any time or anyone's job. BP is trying its best to clean the water and there's so much money spent on it which affects the economy.
Connection:
What is clear is that the most immediate economic concern involves the fishing industry. Louisiana seafood production has an estimated economic impact of $2.4 billion. Production of about 23 percent of that amount has been temporarily shut down by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration because of the oil spill. Another source of worry is, that although the majority of the state's fishing waters remain free of oil and open to fishing, the ongoing concern is that oil will make its way into estuaries. It will then create extensive damages. The Small Business Administration on Thursday announced plans to offer low-interest loans to small businesses on the Louisiana Gulf Coast that are suffering financial losses tied to the oil spill. The agency also is allowing some small firms impacted by the spill to defer payment on SBA disaster loans related to the hurricanes in recent years. "If it gets into our estuaries, there could be some longterm impact," said Ewell Smith, executive director of the Louisiana Seafood Promotion and Marketing Board.
Reflections:
According to Charles Colgan of the National Ocean Economics Program, around 1 billion dollar of American GDP comes from the gulf area including around 13 billion in tourism and 11 billion in the oil and all that has got affected by the oil spill. Tourism is the main income factor in Florida and is massively reduced now. This is especially true for Florida, where the state relies completely on revenue from tourists and has no state income tax. This loss of tourism could devastate Florida, and the entire Gulf region. Other than BP, the country has to take help from other companies and this will cost a lot more and still an endless time to complete the job of oil cleaning. All this expenses are adding fuel to the fire and affecting the economy.It had a huge impact on the oil prices. And there was a huge revenue loss, fall in share price, job losses, 11 people died, and the safety measures were ignored.
