Shell's Mars and Olympus Oil Platforms Did Not "Break Loose" During Hurricane Ida

In the midst of Hurricane Ida, one of the strongest hurricanes to ever hit the United States Mainland, the Mississippi Weather Network posted some shocking news on Facebook. It reported that Shell's Mars and Olympus deep-water oil production hubs had broken loose. Despite the fact that the story was unfounded, screenshots of the post were widely shared. 

Shortly after its post, the Mississippi Weather Network redacted its claim. The redaction post stated, “Our report on a potential issue with an oil related vessel in the Gulf of Mexico has been completely redacted until further information can be verified by the oil company(ies) in question or U.S. government officials.”

Shell also responded to the false report. On August 30th, Shell conducted a flyover of the Mars, Olympus, and Ursa oil platforms. On August 31st on their website, Shell issued the following update, “Yesterday, we conducted an initial flyover of assets that were in the path of the storm and were able to confirm that Mars, Olympus and Ursa are all intact and on location.”