Once MMS approved BP's APD to re-enter well A, it was basically a race against time, pitting high tech-drilling expertise against known geohazards. How can this be gross negligence?

From MMS files, London Stock Exchange(LSE), Openwells, BP report

BP immediately experienced serious problems with its Deepwater Horizon semi-sub operation on 2010 Feb 3. For ten days they worked, unsuccessfully, to seal large cracks at the base of the well. BP informed the MMS on 2010 Feb 13 that the cracks were causing uncontrollable bursts of natural gas, and they filed a permit to abandon the well immediately.

On the day (3Feb2010) DWH re-entered well A, BP directors started to dispose of BP shares (Tony Hayward-60,674 Ian Conn-39,236 Andy Inglis-34,383 Byron E Grote-41,616 shares).

Tony’s sell-off on 17th March 2010 (2283,228 shares) was made after the well had numerous problems and missed its targeted completion date of 8 March 2010. This time 3 other directors (Conn, Grote & Inglis) followed suit. A total of 531,461 shares were disposed by the 4 directors in the period 17 – 30 March 2010. From 12 April till 12 July 2010, Tony Hayward and Iain Conn were seen to be buying minuscule shares (total 491 shares) in an apparent bid to throw off the sense; 50 shares each at 641.1p (losing 18p) on 12th April.

If BP's directors and MMS who all claimed to be ignorant of the field problems at Macondo, then the "out of well control situation" (technically a gas blow-out) on the first well (A) reported on 13 Feb 2010 should have been another one of the numerous wake-up calls. The blow-out was serious enough for a sitting President to summon the heads of NOAA, USCG, BP and MMS to the White House for an urgent special (secret) meeting. This has never happened before.

FM 3-39.40 INTERNMENT AND RESETTLEMENT OPERATIONS dated 13 Feb 2010.
This is a further update of the original USAMPS 1975 manual of the same name.

There have been 4 updates/revisions since the original that we're aware of. It may be very significant to the 13FEB10 meeting between BP and POTUS at the DC White House as there was a DOD contingency plan for forced evacuation along the Gulf coast that was placed into ready alert status on 28APR10.