FACT that both drilling and production platforms have been destroyed by massive undersea gas release
Would like to see proof of that. You may be misunderstanding the technicalities of the drilling process and what can happen when things get out of hand. We had one platform that burnt to the ground (water?) when things turned nasty and the famed "Red" Adair was brought in to put the fire out and cap the well. Aviation is not the only sphere to suffer accidents.
I live near the Gippsland Lakes, which are particularly shallow in some areas, and from time to time islands of mud suddenly appear overnight. But it's not an explosive event, just a slow raising of the lake bed. Caused by gas formations. It is an area of oil, gas and coal production.