BP tweaks plan to siphon away oil from Gulf leak; may insert 2nd pipe into original riser

BP tweaks plan to siphon away oil from Gulf leak

ROBERT, La. — BP plans two wrinkles on the technique it plans to try next to stem the flow of oil spewing from a sunken rig.

BP chief operating officer Doug Suttles said Wednesday that engineers hope to link a second pipe to the end of the pipe that was supposed to pump oil from the sea floor before the Deepwater Horizon oil rig exploded and sunk last month.

The pipe will funnel away the oil that’s collected in the original piping, called the riser. Suttles says it could arrive Wednesday and be usable by Thursday or Friday.

Suttles says BP hopes to try this latest plan or a similar fix called the “top hat,” which is a small container to be placed on top of the leak to trap most of the oil and bring it to the surface.