Whos responsible . Bp. [watch ticking] my parents are my best friends. Theyre all i had. My life ended that day. Bp ruined my life and ended my life that day. I had to start all over. Eva rowes parents were among the 15 who died that day in texas city. It was the worst workplace accident in this country in 16 years. These things do not have to happen. They are preventable. Theyre predictable, and people do not have to die because theyre earning a living. Welcome to 60 minutes on cnbc. Im leslie stahl. Oil is the engine that drives our economy. And as oil becomes scarcer, the push to discover and develop new sources becomes increasingly dangerous. This edition examines two recent disasters in the oil industry with a great deal in common the deepwater horizon rig in the gulf of mexico and the refinery at texas city, which suffered explosions five years apart. They were both operated by bp. And in both cases, 60 minutes looked at whether bps cost saving measures may have had deadly consequences. First well look at the biggest off shore oil spill in history, the blowout of the deepwater horizon drilling rig in 2010. Critical revelations in the disaster have come from one of the last crewmen to escape the rig, Mike Williams, who first told his story to scott pelley in may, 2010. Williams said the blowout was the result of a series of mishaps that started weeks before. The night of the disaster, he was in his workshop when the engines that power the rigs generators began to run wild. It was the first sign that explosive gas was enveloping the deepwater horizon. I heard the engines revving. The lights are glowing. Im hearing the alarms. I mean, theyre at a constant state now. Its just, beep, beep, beep. It doesnt stop. But even thats starting to get drowned out by the sound of the engine increasing in speed. And my lights get so incredibly bright that they physically explode. Im pushing my way back from the desk when my computer monitor exploded. This is the deepwater horizon in the hours before its destruction the night of april 20th. Ironically, the end was coming only months after the rigs greatest achievement. Mike williams was the chief Electronics Technician in charge of the rigs computers and electrical systems. And seven months before, hed helped the crew drill the Deepest Oil Well in history 35,000 feet. It was special. Theres no way around it. Everyone was talking about it. The congratulations that were flowing around, it just made you feel proud to work there. Williams worked for the owner, transocean, the largest offshore drilling company. Like its sister rigs, the deepwater horizon cost 350 million, rose 378 feet from bottom to top, both advanced and safe. None of her 126 crew had been seriously injured in seven years. [machinery whirring] go, go, go the Safety Record was remarkable, because offshore drilling today pushes technology with challenges matched only by the space program. Deepwater horizon was in 5,000 feet of water and would drill another 13,000 feet, a total of 3 1 2 miles. The oil and gas down there are under enormous pressure. And the key to keeping that pressure under control is this fluid that drillers call mud. Mud is a manmade drilling fluid thats pumped down the well and back up the sides in continuous circulation. The sheer weight of this fluid keeps the oil and gas down and the well under control. Come on, come on. The tension in every drilling operation is between doing things safely and doing them fast. Time is money, and this job was costing bp 1 million a day. But williams says there was trouble from the start. Getting to the oil was taking too long. How long did you expect it to take . We were told 21 days. How long did it actually take . We were at six weeks. With the schedule slipping, williams says a bp manager ordered a faster pace. And he requested to the driller, hey, lets bump it up. Lets bump it up. And what he was talking about there is, hes bumping up the rate of penetration, how fast the drill bit is going down. Williams says going faster caused the bottom of the well to split open, swallowing tools and the drilling fluid called mud. We actually got stuck. And we got stuck so bad that we had to send tools down into the drill pipe and sever the pipe. That well was abandoned. Deepwater horizon had to drill a new route to the oil. It cost bp more than two weeks and millions of dollars. We were informed of this during one of the safety meetings that somewhere in the neighborhood of 25 million was lost in Bottom Hole Assembly and mud. And you always kind of knew that in the back of your mind when they start throwing these big numbers around that there was gonna be a push coming. You know, a push to pick up production, pick up the pace. There was pressure on the crew after this happened . Theres always pressure, but yes, the pressure was increased. But the trouble was just beginning. When drilling resumed, williams says, four weeks before the explosion, the rigs most vital piece of Safety Equipment was damaged. Down near the seabed is the blowout preventer, or b. O. P. Its used to seal the well shut in order to test the pressure and integrity of the well, and in case of a blowout its the crews only hope. A key component is a rubber gasket at the top called an annular, which can close tightly around the drill pipe. Williams says that during a test they closed the gasket. But while it was shut tight, a crewman on deck accidentally nudged a joystick, applying hundreds of thousands of pounds of force and moving 15 feet of drill pipe through the closed blowout preventer. Later, a man monitoring drilling fluid rising to the top made a troubling find. He discovered chunks of rubber in the drilling fluid. He thought it was important enough to gather this double handful of chunks of rubber and bring them into the driller shack. I recall asking the supervisor if this was out of the ordinary. He said, oh, its no big deal. And i thought, how can it be not a big deal . Theres chunks of our seal is now missing. And williams says he knew about another problem with the blowout preventer. The b. O. P. Is operated from the surface by wires connected to two control pods. One is a backup. Williams says that one of the pods lost some of its function weeks before. Transocean tells us the b. O. P. Was tested by Remote Control after these incidents and passed. But nearly a mile below, there was no way to know how much damage there was or why the pods seemed unreliable. In the hours before the disaster, deepwater horizons work was nearly done. All that was left was to seal the well closed. The oil would be pumped out by another rig later. Williams says that during a safety meeting, the manager for the rig owner, transocean, was explaining how they were going to close the well when the manager from bp interrupted. I had the Bp Company Man sitting directly beside me. And he literally perked up and said, well, my process is different. And i think were gonna do it this way. And they kind of lined out the way that he thought it should go that day. So there was sort of a chest bumping kind of deal. The communication seemed to really break down as to who was ultimately in charge. When we return, the mishaps on deepwater horizon have tragic consequences. I heard this awful hissing noise, this whoosht, and at the height of the hiss a huge explosion. [watch ticking] my mantra . Trust your instincts to make the call. To treat my low testosterone, my doctor and i went with axiron, the only underarm low t treatment. Axiron can restore t levels to normal in about 2 weeks in most men. Axiron is not for use in women or anyone younger than 18 or men with prostate or breast cancer. Women, especially those who are or who may become pregnant and children should avoid contact where axiron is applied as unexpected signs of puberty in children or changes in body hair or increased acne in women may occur. Report these symptoms to your doctor. Tell your doctor about all medical conditions and medications. Serious side effects could include increased risk of prostate cancer; worsening prostate symptoms; decreased sperm count; ankle, feet or body swelling; enlarged or painful breasts; problems breathing while sleeping; and blood clots in the legs. Common side effects include skin redness or irritation where applied, increased red blood cell count, headache, diarrhea, vomiting, and increase in psa. Ask your doctor about the only underarm low t treatment, axiron. Because what you dont know can hurt you. Urance, what if you didnt know that its smart to replace washingmachine hoses every five years . What if you didnt know that you might need extra coverage for more expensive items . And what if you didnt know that teen drivers are four times more likely to get into an accident . sup the more you know, the better you can plan for whats ahead. Talk to farmers and get smarter about your insurance. We are farmers bum pa dum, bum bum bum bum the day of the blowout bp flew several managers to the deepwater horizon for a ceremony to congratulate the crew for seven years without an injury. While they were there, a surge of explosive gas came flying up the well from three miles below. The rigs Diesel Engine switched power to electric generators, sucked in the gas, and began to run wild. Im hearing hissing. The engines are overrevving, and then all of a sudden, all of the lights in my shop just started getting brighter and brighter and brighter. And i knew then we were something bad was getting ready to happen. It was almost 10 00 at night, and directly under the deepwater horizon were four men in a fishing boat albert andry, dustin king, ryan chaisson, and westley bourg. When i heard the gas comin out, i knew exactly what it was almost immediately. When the gas cloud was descending on you, what was that like . It was scary. And when i looked at it, it burned my eyes. And i knew we had to get out of there. You could tell what it was . I knew it was methane. On the rig, Mike Williams was reaching for a door to investigate the engine noise. These are 3inch thick steel, firerated doors with six stainless steel hinges supporting em on the frame. As i reach for the handle, i heard this awful hissing noise, this whoosht, and at the height of the hiss, a huge explosion. The explosion literally rips the door from the hinges, hits, impacts me and takes me to the other side of the shop. And im up against the wall, when i finally come around, with the door on top of me. And i remember thinking to myself, you know, this, this is it. Im gonna die right here. The men on the fishing boat had a camera, look at the water on fire. I began to crawl across the floor. As i got to the next door, it exploded and took me, the door, and slid me about 35 feet backwards again and planted me up against another wall. At that point, i made a decision. Im going to get outside. I may die out there, but im gonna get outside. So i crawl across the grid work of the floor and make my way to that opening, where i see the light. I made it out the door, and i thought to myself, ive accomplished what i set out to accomplish. I made it outside. At least now i can breathe. I may die out here, but i can breathe. Williams couldnt see. Something was pouring into his eyes, and thats when he noticed a gash on his forehead. I didnt know if it was blood. I didnt know if it was brains. I didnt know if it was flesh. I didnt know what it was. I just knew there wasi was i was in trouble. At that point, i grabbed a lifejacket. I was on the aft lifeboat deck. There were two functioning lifeboats at my disposal right there. But i knew i couldnt board them. I had responsibilities. His responsibility was to report to the bridge, the rigs command center. Im hearing alarms. Im hearing radio chatter, mayday, mayday, mayday. Weve lost propulsion weve lost power we have a fire man overboard on the starboard forward deck. We lost personnel in the water. Any person that can help, it will be really appreciated. Williams says that on the bridge he watched them try to activate emergency systems. The b. O. P. That was supposed to protect us and keep us from the blowout obviously had failed. And now the emergency disconnect to get us away from this fuel source has failed. We have no communications to the b. O. P. The situation thats around, theres a lot of people jumping in the water. [indistinct radio chatter] and i see one of the lifeboats in the water, and its motoring away from the vessel. I looked at the captain and asked him. I said, whats going on . He said, ive given the order to abandon ship. Every sunday they had practiced lifeboat drills and the procedure for making sure that everyone was accounted for. But in the panic, all that went to hell. The lifeboats were leaving. Theyre leaving without you . They have left, without the captain and without knowing that they had everyone that had survived all this onboard. Ive been left now by two lifeboats. And i look at the captain, and i said, what do we do now . By now the fire is not only on the derrick. Its starting to spread to the deck. At that point, there were several more explosions, large, intense explosions. What do they feel like, sound like . Its just takeyourbreathaway type explosions, shake your body to the core explosions. Take your vision away from the percussion of the explosions. About eight survivors were left on the rig. I said, were gonna burn up, or were gonna jump. How far is it to the sea . Maybe 90 feet, 100 feet. Its a long ways. In the middle of the night, with blood in his eyes, fire at his back, and the sea ten stories below, williams made his choice. I remember closing my eyes and sayin a prayer, and asking god to tell my wife and my little girl that daddy did everything he could and if i survive this, its for a reason. I made those three steps, and i pushed off the end of the rig. And i fell for what seemed like forever. A lot of things go through your mind. [watch ticking] Mike Williams story continues. And i thought, well, i must have burned up, cause i dont feel anything. I dont hear anything. I dont smell anything. I must be dead. When 60 minutes on cnbc returns. [watch ticking] vo traveling you definitely end up meeting a lot more people but a friend under water is something completely different. I met a turtle friend today so, you dont get that very often. It seemed like it was more than happy to have us in his home. So beautiful. Avo more travel. More options. More personal. Whatever youre looking for expedia has more ways to help you find yours. [ male announcer ] you wait all year for summer. This summer was definitely worth the wait. Summers best event from cadillac. Let summer try and pass you by. Lease this allnew cadillac ats for around 299 per month or purchase for 0 apr for 60 months. Come in now for the best offers of the model year. Vietnam in 1972. [ all ] fort benning, georgia in 1999. [ male announcer ] usaa Auto Insurance is often handed down from generation to generation. Because it offers a superior level of protection and because usaas commitment to serve military members, veterans, and their families is without equal. Begin your legacy, get an Auto Insurance quote. Usaa. We know what it means to serve. What are you guys doing . Having some fiber with new phillips fiber good gummies. Theyre fruity delicious just two gummies have 4 grams of fiber to help support regularity i want some. [ woman ] hop on over [ marge ] fiber the fun way, from phillips. Has oats that can help lower cholesterol . And it tastes good . Sure does wow. Its the honey, it makes it taste so. Well, would you look at the time. Whats the rush . Be happy. Be healthy. [watch ticking] wearing a lifejacket, Mike Williams, the chief Electronics Technician aboard the deepwater horizon in april, 2010, jumped feetfirst off the deck and away from the exploding rig. He had witnessed key events before the disaster. But if he was going to tell anyone what he saw, he would have to survive a tenstory drop into the sea. I went down way, way below the surface, obviously. And when i popped back up, i felt like, okay, ive made it. But i feel this godawful burning all over me. And im thinking, am i on fire . You know, i just dont know. So i start doin the only thing i know to do, swim. I got to get away from this thing. I could tell i was floatin in oil and grease and diesel fuel. I mean, its just the smell and i remember lookin under the rig and seein the water on fire. And i thought, what have you done . You were dry, and you werent covered in oil up there. Now youve jumped and youve made this, and youve landed in oil. The fires gonna come across the water, and youre gonna burn up. And i thought, you just got to swim harder. So i swam, and i kicked, and i swam, and i kicked, and i swam as hard as i could until i remember not feelin any more pain, and i didnt hear anything. And i thought, well, i must have burned up, cause i dont feel anything. I dont hear anything. I dont smell anything. I must be dead. And i remember a real faint voice of, over here, over here. And i thought, what in the world is that . And the next thing i know, he grabbed my lifejacket and flipped me over into this small open bow boat. I didnt know who he was. I didnt know where hed come from. I didnt care. I was now out of the water. Williams survival may be critical to the investigation. We took williams story to dr. Bob bea, a professor of engineering at the university of california, berkeley, and a former chief engineer of shell oil. The white house has asked bea to help analyze the deepwater horizon accident. Bea investigated the columbia Space Shuttle disaster for nasa and the Hurricane Katrina disaster for the National Science foundation. Beas voice never completely recovered from the weeks he spent in the flood in new orleans. But as the white house has found, hes among the nations best. Hes investigated more than 20 offshore rig disasters. Mr. Williams comes forward with these very detailed elements from his viewpoints on a rig. Thats a brave and intelligent man. What hes saying is very important to this investigation, you believe . It is. What strikes professor bea is Mike Williams description of the blowout preventer. Williams says that in a drilling accident four weeks before the explosion, the critical rubber gasket, called an annular, was damaged, and pieces of it started coming out of the well. According to williams, when parts of the annular start coming up onto the deck, someone from transocean says, look, dont worry about it. What does that tell you . Houston, i think we have a problem. Heres why thats so important. The annular is used to seal the well for pressure tests. And those tests determine whether dangerous gas is seeping in. So if the annular is dama