Photo: KLFY-TV in Lafayette -- 2 Missing, 4 Sent to Hospital After Oil Rig Explosion in the Gulf
At least four people have been sent to the hospital and two are still missing after an explosion on an oil rig off the coast of Louisiana.
The production platform is in the Gulf of Mexico, about 25 miles southeast of Grand Isle, Louisiana, and is owned by Black Elk Energy.
The devastation of oil rig explosions is still fresh on the minds of many, especially since a massive settlement was recently reached with BP following the massive oil spill of at a Deep Water Horizon rig.
It should be noted, however, that this platform is in shallow water near West Cote Blanche Bay and unlike the Deep Water Horizon rig is not drilling. It it believed the explosion was a result of a construction problem.
On Black Elk’s website, it states it was scheduled to begin drilling the first of 23 new wells in the Gulf of Mexico.
The cause of the explosion is yet to be revealed, but emergency crews are already on site attempting to extinguish the fire.
According to CNN the Coast Guard is saying there is no oil in the water.
