[Pazuzu]

I do think there is some downhole damage to the well. Oil and gas are not only corrosive, but bringing sand and silt up at high speed, which will scour and abrade anything it moves along, like the wellbore. This was an exploration well, not a production well...the equipment, bore, cement, etc is not the same quality and strength as a production well.

Some of my contacts and I fully expected to see large chunks of wellbore coming out when they finally cut that riser off (meaning that the bore failed, cracked apart, and was shoved up into the BOP). We, of course, didn't see that, because the video feeds all turned away/died when they finally opened the riser.

Hmm...

The relief wells will/should hit below the wellbore damage, so they'll allow the deepest part of the well to be sealed anyways.