BP to probe top kill viability

NEW ORLEANS, May 25 (UPI) -- BP said Tuesday it would deploy underwater vehicles to determine if the so-called top kill operation can stop the oil gushing into the Gulf of Mexico.

BP is scrambling to find a solution to fix an underwater well that has been spewing oil and natural gas into the Gulf of Mexico since the BP-operated Deepwater Horizon drilling platform caught fire and sank five weeks ago.

BP is looking toward a top kill operation, which involves injecting heavy drilling fluids into the well to stem the flow of oil and gas. The company said in a statement Tuesday that most of the equipment is ready to go, with deployment expected this week.

The company added that diagnostic work using remote control vehicles would precede the top kill operation.

"The knowledge from this diagnostic work will be instrumental in determining whether to proceed with this option," the company added.

BP is under fire for what some federal and environmental groups consider an inadequate response to the Gulf of Mexico disaster.

Meanwhile, Tony Hayward, the chief executive officer at BP, said an internal investigation of the April fire that sunk the rig found that a series of cascading events led up to the accident.

"I understand people want a simple answer about why this happened and who is to blame," he said. "The honest truth is that this is a complex accident, caused by an unprecedented combination of failures."