Freakiest Oil Drilling Disaster Ever was 30 Years Ago Today
On November 20, 1980, a 14-inch drill bit from a Texaco oil drilling rig on the surface of Lake Peigneur in Iberia Parish, Louisiana cut through a working salt mine 4,000 feet below.
The result marks one of the freakiest oil drilling disasters ever, and clearly one of the biggest engineering fails of all time.
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Actually there is a little more to this story than the “official” reports. Diamond Crystal Salt Co. lost its lawsuit against Texaco. It had submitted some erroneous data of that 1400 foot level shaft which had been extended too close to the edge of the dome in the first place. Also unreported is how the initial trickle at the end of the shaft (which had been abandoned) was discovered. The drill bit did not actually pierce the mine.