BP oil well kill nears completion

The oil company says a vital relief well has intercepted the original well that began spewing oil into the Gulf of Mexico five months ago.

British Petroleum announced yesterday that its attempt to permanently kill the burst oil well in the Gulf of Mexico has reached the final stages. The well burst on April 20 and spewed oil for nearly three months until it was capped on July 15. BP then pumped cement into the top of the well on August 5, and will now begin pumping cement into its base through a relief well that was completed this week. This so-called “bottom kill” process could take up to four days to complete, and is intended to ensure that the world’s largest ever offshore oil spill is over for good.