US oil companies are not adequately prepared for disasters such as the Deepwater Horizon spill, it has been claimed.

According to lawmakers, the oil and gas industry is not ready to tackle unforeseen circumstances in deepwater oil operations and must invest further in training and safety.

Speaking at a US House of Representatives hearing into the Deepwater crisis this week, Democrat representative Ed Markey stated that contingency plans must be more resilient.

"The American people deserve oil safety plans that are ironclad and not boilerplate," he said.

Mr Markey added that when companies believe there is a "zero chance" of oil spillage, they "do zero disaster planning".

The news could lead to more investment in oil and gas training in the US as the industry seeks to protect itself against future incidents.

The Deepwater Horizon sank on April 22nd after an explosion on the offshore rig two days before.

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