Halliburton Worker Says He Overlooked Signs of Well Blowout Risk
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A Halliburton Co. worker assigned to monitor a BP Plc well testified at trial that he missed a warning sign of a potential blowout on the Deepwater Horizon rig before the explosion that set off the largest offshore oil spill in U.S. history.
Joseph Keith, a “mud logger” who monitored the flow of fluid in the well, agreed under questioning in court yesterday in New Orleans that he didn’t alert others on the rig on April 20, 2010, as pressure increased on the drilling pipe, a sign of a possible “kick.” A kick is an entry of gas or fluid into the wellbore, which can set off a blowout.