Page 8: of Maritime Reporter Magazine (June 2025)

Back to the Drawing Board

Disaster Response Lessons from Real Life ... Sort of …

Photo credit: Pim van Hemmen

By Rik van Hemmen here are a few stories that I often tell when the on, but one news bit that showed up was a university profes- subject of leadership in disasters is discussed. I sor who had done his own calculations on BP’s estimates of ? gured I’d put them down on paper so I can stop the amount of oil that spewed from the wellhead and came up repeating myself. with a larger number. The reporters checked with BP and BP

T

It was pre OPA90, a single-skin tanker had run over a rock said that their estimate was correct and therefore the profes- in the Port of New Jersey. It put a hole in the bottom, and sor’s estimate was wrong. A great way to create an enemy.

heavy fuel oil was draining out the bottom and would do so BP’s disaster response was wobbly at best, but when I read until the oil head level in the tank would equalize with the wa- that, I had full con? rmation that BP knew nothing of disaster terline. The tanker would hit bottom at low tide, but the hole management. This was one of the few items that could be was small, and quick action would reduce oil in the harbor. effectively put to bed and would remove one distraction in a

Moreover, it is important to create a water seal in the bot- disaster that had too many already.

tom of a busted tank. People showed up quickly to help. A Instead of insisting that the professor was wrong, the cor- tank cleaning company, both famous and infamous, showed rect solution would be for BP to tell the reporter, “We appreci- up, opened the tank dome, dumped in a pump, and started an ate the effort this professor has put in and will put him in touch over-the-top transfer to other tanks and a barge that pulled up. with our technical team so we can compare numbers. Can you

About an hour into the process, we were making further please provide me with his contact information?” plans in the wheelhouse when a high-ranking representative A BP rep could then contact this professor and ask him to of the NJ DEP showed up and loudly proclaimed, “I am in come to the team tech center. If BP really wanted to show charge now, and nothing happens until I say so.” off, they could even provide him with a plane ticket or even

The tank cleaning company team leader raised his hand- a private jet.

held VHF and said, “Stop the pumps.” The professor would be ? attered and have no reason to

Next the DEP rep said, “So what are you going to do?” badmouth BP. Once the professor presented his data, one of

And the tank cleaning company team leader said, “I thought three things could happen. BP was right and the professor was you were going to F@$*ing tell us.” General laughter, the wrong, and now BP knows how to defeat the professor’s argu-

DEP rep slinked away and was never heard from again. ment if he insists on further promoting it.

There is so much to learn from this short story. You cannot If the professor was right, BP now has the option to publish an be a leader if you don’t know what is going on. Also, in a update and publicly thank the professor or, let me be cynical for technical setting, bravado will always end up in humiliation. a moment, buy his silence. Regardless, BP now has more data

There are leaders who may show up without knowing what is and therefore can more effectively lead the disaster response.

going on, but the ? rst thing you do is nicely ask for an update. Or they were both not sure what the real amount was, and

This DEP guy did none of that. I wonder if he learned his lesson. BP can ask the professor to work with them in re? ning the

Next, I will shift forward in time a few years and I will be data. The interesting part is that by inviting the professor to more speci? c since it played out in public. This story relates participate, BP removed external distractive noise in their di- to BP’s Deepwater Horizon blowout. There was a lot going saster response and probably gained an ally.

8 Maritime Reporter & Engineering News • June 2025

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