Fire on the Horizon: The Untold Story of the Explosion Aboard the Deepwater Horizon

I always had a hard time trying to explain to people in my family or friends outside the industry exactly what it is I do. This Book really is a good description of rig life. Very accurate. My son and I read this book together. He is 10. He was very interested in the book and could not wait to get to the next chapter. The techinical and historical parts in the book were very interesting. Some parts of the book made me laugh, some were very emotional. Especially the time when the families were not being promptly notified about their loved ones. The not knowing must have been hell. Then either the happiness that your loved one made it or the sadness that followed revelations of the end. Even the ones that did survive are changed either physically, emotionally or both for ever. Some parts really pissed me off to know that in this day of safety and work practices that the managers made such poor choices on cutting corners to save a penny. The thing that sticks out for me is the loss the families endured. It seemed like their loss and suffering took a back seat to the enormity of the event itself. The report of the moments leading up to the blow out and explosion, during the fire and after the abandonment were so intense I could not put the book down. I try to put myself in their shoes. What would I do? I can not imagine and refuse to speculate. I just wanted to pass on my gratitude to John for such a Book. I really could not put it down. I am going to read it again to make sure I did not miss anything. I also plan on sending copies of this book to family members as gifts.

I was looking foward to reading this book since I first heard rumors of it on gcaptain.com. As a working mariner and someone who has spent years working in the oilfield I was looking forward to learning more about what really happened out there that night.I enjoyed reading the book. It was a real page turner. I got a lot out of the explainations of how the drilling operations worked and what exactly went on while they were drilling the well. It was interesting to find out more about what the rig used all that cement and barite we would carry out to them for.I thought the best part of the book was how the writers tried to get across to readers what it is really like offshore. No one really gets it unless they have experienced it. Its a small world out here and crews become like family. I think they could have improved the story by writing a little more about more of the crewmembers and thier daily life onboard the rig.I was a little confused about some of the more technical aspects of the drilling operations, I could have benefited from more simple explainations and pictures of how they pumped the cement down to flush out the mud, etc.All in all, the book was a good read. It was interesting to learn some of the history of the rigs and the companies and how that all tied into what happened on the Deepwater Horizon. I hope there will be some important "lessons learned" from this accident and we will never see anything like this again.

At its Prologue, Capt. John Konrad, asks the reader "I ask that you read this book, and judge for yourselves if we have succeeded", and the only possible reply is: Yes, you have.I've been working for a short time on the offshore business, but I've always been a big fan of journalistic accounts of true facts (i.e. "Barbarians at the Gate", "Too Big To Fail", "And the Band Played on" and so forth) and, since I've started working offshore, by chance on a well belonging to BP, I became a fast and avid reader of accounts of the Horizon disaster.All I can say is, in my modest opinion, this book is by far the best written on the subject. Not only because it tells the story as a whole and does not place blame on specific individuals or, again in my opinion, companies, but in circumstances that escalated up to the tragedy, but also because anybody can understand it.It explains the enormous diversity of different equipment, departments, hierarchical positions and people, from any and all walks of life, that constitute an oil rig.It was also written in way that captures your attention and you just can't put it down.Truly excellent and a certain "read again" item.Denis Paolillo

Great mix of technical engineering explanations as well as the personal stories behind the people and places who were a part of this tragedy.

As a long-time industry participant, and one who cares deeply about the people and companies involved in Horizon disaster, I bought and read all of these in the last two weeks:1. Fire on the Horizon: The Untold Story of the Gulf Oil Disaster - Tom Shroder, John Konrad2. Disaster on the Horizon: High Stakes, High Risks, and the Story Behind the Deepwater Well Blowout - Bob Cavnar3. Blowout in the Gulf: The BP Oil Spill Disaster and the Future of Energy in America - William Freudenburg, Robert Gramling4. Drowning in Oil: BP & the Reckless Pursuit of Profit - Loren C. SteffyOf the four, Fire on the Horizon is the very best, followed by Drowning in Oil: BP & the Reckless Pursuit of Profit.Bob Cavnar's Disaster on the Horizon: High Stakes, High Risks, and the Story Behind the Deepwater Well Blowout is sort of OK, he has a lot of personal industry experience.The time spent reading Blowout in the Gulf: The BP Oil Spill Disaster and the Future of Energy in America was a waste.Shroder and Konrad have a good handle on the issues. This book, as well as all the others, is a little premature, since the autopsy on the BOP has only been given to the government this week and not yet released to the public, but whatever it says won't change the facts leading up to the need to use it. The incident should never have gotten to that point, and both BP's and Transocean's management mistakes led the crew there. Yes, the finger can be pointed at the crew, but that's putting the blame too low on the pyramid. The decisions made both onshore and on the rig in the days, weeks, and years leading up to the blowout were the real root cause.

Noting this month August 2016- that another Transocean Rig is aground in Scotland my recent read of Konrad and Shroder's brilliant and very fair report on the awful Deepwater Horizon disaster in the Gulf of Mexico in 2010 and it's less violent and traumatising but never the less ghastly on--going effects highlights the inherent dangers present in complex engineering and operating structures.I say fair- and I am obviously an energy consumer, and as it happens a fan of Gulf seafood...and indeed a BP share holder- but it appears to me that fair and accurate are indeed the words. I have seen few challenges online to the detail , accuracy and humanity of the story.It's a thrilling well paced narrative...with of course some gut wrenching personal tragedy...but of course the reality of the story, the 'real' characters serve to emphasise the personal effects of tragic events. But the skill in the reporting is that it is never mawkish.Hopefully lessons have been and were learned.Can one recommend a book that has some real life tragedy, as 'being well worth reading ..and enjoyable,' I think you can, and looking at the idyllic rural ultra clean coast of Scotland..currently dominated by the grounding on another massive rig I think you should read it .Harry Buckle.

A mariner's experience and hindsight has contributed to make it a Great Book !Would like to see more of that stuff - in German, please.

The focus of this book is a history of the Deepwater Horizon mobile offshore drilling unit (MODU), the run-up to the blowout and the very immediate aftermath of the explosions. It pre-dates the publication of most of the various investigation and inquiry reports. It does not dwell on the subsequent well containment and environmental clean-up.Konrad is a former Transocean employeeand oil rig captain (whose closest friend was Chief Mate on the Deepwater Horizon) who founded the gCaptain.com maritime web site. Scroder an ex Washington Post editor and writer.While the account could have been biased (one way or the other) by Konrad's history, it is a well balance account that will give laypeople a good insight to the operation of MODUs. Many of the early chapters are heavy on 'human interest' stories.Author's Note: Part introduction and part bio of Konrad.Prologue (p1-2): 23:15 20 Apr 2010 - the situation moments after the initial explosions.Chapter 1 (p3-13): starts the story in Dec 2000 as Deepwater Horizon is under construction in South Korea for R&B Falcon. Briefly described the vessel's layout.Chapter 2 (p15-22): Has a brief history of how the concept of MODUs came into being.Chapter 3 (p23-28): Deepwater Horizon is completed in 2001. Focus in mainly on the crews extra cirricula activity in Korea.Chapter 4 (p29-42): Chief Mate's bio.Chapter 5 (p43-52): Deepwater Horizon sails for the US. Highlights the differences between the 'mariners' and the 'drillers'. BP take MODU on contract. R&B Falcon, overloaded with debt acquiring news MODUs is bought out by Transocean Sedco Forex (as it was called at the time). The author notes the procedural and cultural differences between the two companies.Chapter 6 (p53-66): Discusses how BP originally used Transocean's Marianas MODU (the converted Tharos), known for its role after the Piper Alpha explosion in 1988) on the Macondo prospect. Very quickly the Marianas ran into problems including a Blow Out Preventer (BOP) failure after a gas surge. When electrical problems surfaced after a hurricane the well was abandonded. The chapter concluded with a description of a blowout on 23 Dec 2006 in the North Sea on Transocean's SEDCO 711, drilling for Shell.Chapter 7 (p67-86): Up to page 81 is mainly about life on a MODU. The focus then switches to Transocean's safety activity, though mostly activity to prevent individual occupational injuries rather than rarer process incidents (like blowouts).Chapter 8 (p87-95): By May 2008 Deepwater Horizon had drilled more than 20 wells. However manning levels had decreased since entry into service and more maintenance was being deferred. It is also claimed that shortcuts were being taken on Permit To Work. Lock Out Tag Out procedures. During a ballast adjustment on 26 May 2008 water was diverted towards a pipe that had been removed and not replaced, through a valve that had not been locked out. The result were flooded compartments and a list rapidly developed. The emergency response restored order, but there was only an internal investigation and the Captain was replaced. Konrad doesn't say but the implication this was a classic knee-jerk blame culture response with little attention on the systemic issues.Chapter 9 (p96-105): Covers the new Captain briefly before return to discuss the sub-cultures within the growing Transocean group and on their MODUs and how clothing and PPE choices helped signify those divides. Again there is mention of a Transocean safety initiative, displaying colours on safety helmets that represent individuals assessed personality traits. The practices of having oil company reps ('company men') on MODUs and the affect that had on the reality of management decision making and authority is discussed. The chapter concluded with Deepwater Horisons's successful completion of a well in the Tiber field in the Gulf of Mexico at a new record depth (to 39,000ft).Chapter 10 (p107-121): Feb 2010 and the Deepwater Horizon deploys to Macondo and the BOP is put in place on the seabed.Chapter 11 (p123-143): Describes the process of the drilling, the well design and the early 'kicks' (pressure surges in the well). It is described how a hydraulic leak on the BOP was detected and accepted as not requiring immediate action. Other emerging mechanical / system problems are discussed. The basics of well cementing are then described.Chapter 12 (p145-158): Drilling is suspended after confirmation Macondo has commercial potential. The well must now be sealed to be secure but easily commissioned when investment in production is approved. The resulting design challenges and choices are then discussedChapter 13 (p159-163): Crew stories.Chapter 14 (p165-170): Well design decisions are now challenged but without changes occurring. A team whowere ready to test the cement bond are sent ashore, seemingly to save time and money. Though a brief 'positive test' (pressurising the casing) is run, albeit a a time when the test may have created damage to the cement bonding.Chapter 15 (p171-183): A 'negative test' the commences on 20 April 2010. Meanwhile management visitors from BP and Transocean arrive for a management visit and to present an award for injury free operation. Again safety practices are discussed.Chapter 16 (p185-195): The management visit continues and the crew prepared to 'unlatch' from the well. Changes are made to the drilling 'mud' in the well. The chapter ends as leaking gas overcomes the weight of mud and seawater...Chapter 17 (p197-207): Blowout and explosions.Chapters 18-20 (p209-240) Mayday. Escape (for all but 11). Mustering the survivors.Chapter 21 (p241-251): The immediate emergency response. Notification of Next of Kin.Epilogue: (p253-267): Pollution, political fall out and investigations. Personal consequences.

telling the human story alongside a great technical explanation of deep water drilling and the sequence of events leading to the disaster

honestly one of the best books i have ever read.