Waxman wants briefing on new oil rig explosion

A House panel has demanded a briefing from the company that owned the oil rig that exploded Thursday in the Gulf of Mexico.

In a letter to Mariner Energy Inc., the House Energy and Commerce Committee said it wanted information on the incident and its possible causes no later than Sept. 10.

The demand was made in a letter to Mariner from Rep. Henry Waxman (D-Calif.), the committee’s chairman, and Reps. Edward Markey (D-Mass.) and Bart Stupak (D-Mich.).

Thirteen crew members were on board the rig when the accident occurred, but all were evacuated and no injuries were reported.

The accident is raising new questions about the safety of offshore drilling and the oil rigging industry in the wake of the BP oil spill.

The BP spill, one of the worst environmental disasters in U.S. history, was triggered by an explosion in an offshore rig. Oil spilled into the Gulf from the ruptured well for months after the disaster.