Summary
A blowout at the Deepwater Horizon offshore drilling rig caused an explosion and uncontrolled oil release for 87 days, becoming the largest marine oil spill in history.
Systemic Features
- Safety culture and regulatory oversight failures
- Technical failure of blowout preventer and risk externalisation
- Single-point failure triggering long-tail environmental and economic collapse
Cascading Systems Affected
- Marine ecosystems & fisheries
- Tourism industries
- Politics & regulation
- Public trust and legal systems
- Energy sector operational standards
Impacts
- Massive economic losses to Gulf Coast regions
- Long-term ecological and health impacts
- Largest environmental litigation case in U.S. history