NTSB Says Company Failed to Shut Down Oil Pipeline for Nearly 13 Hours After Pressure Dropped

The NTSB said the leak off the coast of Louisiana was the result of underwater landslides, caused by hazards such as hurricanes, that pipeline owner Third Coast

A pelican flies over new marsh grass in front of a state-initiated dredging project near East Grand Terre Island, where the Gulf of Mexico meets Barataria Bay along the Louisiana coast, on Aug. 10, 2010. Gerald Herbert/AP Photo

Roughly 1.1 million gallons of crude oil spilled from a pipeline into the Gulf of Mexico in November 2023 because operators failed to shut it down for nearly 13 hours after their data first hinted at a problem, the National Transportation Safety Board said Thursday.

The NTSB said the leak off the coast of Louisiana was the result of underwater landslides, caused by hazards such as hurricanes, that the pipeline owner Third Coast failed to address even though the threats were well known in the industry.