Gas Attack
The AP filed a story based on interviews with survivors from the Deepwater Horizon. It matches what was said in the earlier firsthand account that I linked to, with one important difference concerning the gas.
The AP referred to the gas as methane [CH4], which is the major component of natural gas. The problem is that the survivor was very specific about the gas that caused the explosion settling on the platform. Methane is lighter than air and would rise, not settle.
There are many different types of gas in an oil well, while the majority is methane, there is also a possibility of propane [C3H8], which is normally generated during the refining process, but does exist in wells. Propane [AKA LP or bottled gas] is heavier than air and is the most probable culprit.
Both are colorless, odorless gases. The “gas odor” is an additive to make people aware of their presence. The difference may seem minor, but when you are looking at the cause of 11 deaths, and how to prevent another fatal accident the small things can be important. Possibly a propane detector and some way of blowing the propane away from the rig could have averted the first explosion.
