Consequences
The consequences of lost circulation can be as little as the loss of a few dollars of drilling fluid, or as disastrous as a blowout and loss of life, so close monitoring of tanks, pits, and flow from the well, to quickly assess and control lost circulation, is taught and practiced. If the fluid in the wellbore drops due to lost circulation (or any other reason), hydrostatic pressure is reduced, thus allowing a gas or fluid, which is under a higher pressure than the reduced hydrostatic pressure, to influx into the wellbore.
Another consequence of lost circulation is called "dry drilling". Dry drilling occurs when fluid is completely lost from the well bore without actual drilling coming to a stop. The effects of dry drilling can be as minor as destroying a bit to as serious as major damage to the wellbore requiring a new well to be drilled. Dry drilling can also cause severed damage to the drill string, including snapping the pipe, and the drilling rig itself.
Read more about this topic: Lost Circulation
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