YUM II/Zapoteca; Campeche, Gulf of Mexico

Campeche, Gulf of Mexico | 1987-Oct-10

Initial Notification: On October 10, 1987, the YUM II, a Mexican exploratory oil well located approximately 20 miles northwest of Ciudad del Carmen in the Bay of Campeche under the Zapoteca rig, experienced a blowout and fire. Apparently, a blowout preventer (BOP) valve malfunction caused the initial blowout. Although the BOP had successfully shut the annulus between the drill pipe and well casing, the blind rams failed to shear through the drill pipe that was still in the well casing. Therefore, oil and gas flowed out of the well, up the drill pipe, and onto the platform where it ignited. The oil discharge increased after the escaping gas and oil forced the drill pipe out of the well. The initial fire was extinguished by October 17. As of October 28, the well was still spewing out a yellow gas/crude mix 60-100 feet in the air. The owners of the well, Petroleos Mexicanos (PEMEX), and the Mexican Navy participated in cleanup operations. The well was finally "killed" on November 30. Even though the incident site was 600 miles from Texas, the slick could have traveled in a northerly direction to reach United States waters depending on the duration of the spill. Accordingly, the USCG Marine Safety Office (MSO) at Corpus Christi, Texas, was notified of the incident on October 13. Verification and correct information were not received until October 16. Even though USCG assistance was refused, the USCG conducted overflights of the area every other day until the well was capped to track the spill response and the movement of the oil. Reports of cleanup activities from the Mexican authorities were infrequent and largely erroneous. Daily reports from the Mexican Embassy to USCG Headquarters in Washington, D.C. were not available when promised. USCG district 8. Keyword: Boom, fire, skimmers, bulldozers, blowout preventer, blowout..