Accidents do happen!.....

Here are the harsh realities of what did happen to these oil rigs. These are sporadic events, and luckily most people were saved - due to the correct evacuation procedures followed. Please do not be alarmed by what you are going to read here...as I said, the accidents are few, in relation to the number of rigs operating and hours worked. You will also notice that lots of improvements and safety measures were initiated due to the incidents - to make it safer for you and other rig workers.

The following column gives a brief overview of fatalities and injuries since 1965 - a more detailed rendition of the individual incidents, follows this table:

You will notice that 1980 and 1988, in particular, were tragic years in the oil industry.

1965: Jack-up rig "SEA GEM" collapsed, off the River Humber. 13 men died. Survivors escaped in life-rafts. Lots of the deaths occurred due to hypothermia in the icy North Sea waters. This incident led to the introduction of stringent safety regulations in the UK sector of the North Sea.

1975: A major fire destroyed 2 out of the three survival capsules on the "EKOFISK A" - a production platform. To worsen matters, the remaining capsule did not operate correctly. Three of the six men on board were killed and the other three were badly injured when they jumped off the 24 metre high rig.

1976: The jack-up rig, "OCEAN EXPRESS" capsized and sank during bad weather in the Gulf of Mexico. It was in tow at the time. Due to an unfortunate capsizing of one of the capsules, 13 men died, despite desperate attempts to right it. Due to this, the capsules were fitted with towing birdies and were given self-righting abilities.

1976: "DEEP SEA DRILLER", a semi-submersible rig, ran aground off the Norwegian coast in heavy weather conditions. 50 men evacuated in the only lifeboat that was available. Engine failure and a huge wave capsized the boat and swept away 6 men hanging on the outside of the raft. The lifeboat righted itself and 44 survivors managed to get ashore. Due to the tough construction of the lifeboat, it saved a lot of lives and was still in a floatable condition after the ordeal.

1977: Production platform "EKOFISK B" suffered a blowout. 92 men, in 4 capsules, were safely evacuated in calm sea conditions

1978: A jack-up rig "ORION", on top of a barge, broke loose whilst under tow. It ran aground on the rocks off Guernsey. All the crew members were rescued - some by RNLI lifeboats and others by helicopters, in severe weather conditions.

1980: "ALEXANDER L KIELLAND", a semi-submersible accommodation rig, lost a leg in a storm in the North Sea. 123 lives were lost. Problems were experienced with the release gear of the lifeboats. Two lifeboats cleared the rig. Many survivors (59 in all) in the water were picked up by one of the lifeboats. This caused Norwegians to review their offshore procedures and alternative evacuation methods.

1980: Jack up rig "DAN PRINCE" sank in Araskan waters during wet towing.

1981: During a heavy storm, the semi-submersible, maintenance/Emergency Support Vessel (ESV), "SEDCO/PHILLIPS SS" and another semi-submersible "TRANSWORLD 85" broke free of their anchors and drifted away. No one was hurt and 62 men in total, were evacuated from the two separate vessels.

1982: Semi-submersible "OCEAN RANGER" keeled over in the North Atlantic (Grand Banks, Newfoundland). The heavy storm causing this accident,  killed the entire crew of 84 people. One of the lifeboats capsized alongside the supply vessel when too many people stood on one side of the boat. Attempts to rescue the men from the freezing waters, failed. This tragedy resulted in the introduction of immersion suits to all men working in cold water areas.

1983: 3 men died as a result of a fire in a utility shaft on the production platform "BRENT B".  Non-essential persons were evacuated to safety and the fire was extinguished by platform personnel.

1983: On the production platform "FORTIES D", 12 men were injured in an explosion and resulting fire. 90 non-essential persons were evacuated to the nearby "FORTIES B".

1983: Explosion on the "CORMORANT A". 3 died in the fire, which was extinguished by on-board fire personnel.

1983: 84 persons were transported to safety in 4 survival capsules when the production platform "CERVEZA" suffered a blow out.

1983: When the drill ship "GLOMAR JAVA SEA" floundered during a typhoon in the South China Seas, all of the 81 persons were lost at sea.

1984: One man was killed and two injured in an oil rig explosion off Texas, in the Gulf of Mexico.

1984: In Peterhead Bay, semi-submersible "ALI BABA" broke her moorings and ran aground. All the crew were safely evacuated and the rig refloated.

1984: Major explosion on the "PIPER A". All the crew taken off without an incident.

1984: Semi-submersible "VINLAND" had a blow out whilst drilling off Halifax (Nova Scotia). Spending 8 hours in a liferaft, the 76 men where eventually transferred to supply vessels.

1984: Thirty-six workers drowned and 17 were injured in an explosion and fire on a Petrobras oil-drilling platform in the Campos Basin, off Brazil.

1985: Two men were killed and two injured in a ballast pump room explosion on the semi-submersible, "GLOMAR ARCTIC II" rig in the North Sea. 46 non-essential persons were evacuated by helicopter to another rig.

1985: Off the coast of Java, the jack-up rig "ZAPATA ENTERPRIZE" drilled into a gas pocket. The blow out caused a massive fire on board. No one was injured.

1985: Another blow out occurred off Trondheim, when the semi-submersible "WEST VANGUARD" was drilling. One person died in the ensuing fire. Rest of crew were winched off by helicopter to  nearby stand-by vessel.

1985: 3 anchors failed of the semi-submersible, maintenance/Emergency Support Vessel (ESV) "THAROS", in severe weather. 140 men were transferred to safety by helicopter.

1985: "PERNOD 61", a jack-up rig, had a bow leg failure during a hurricane in the Gulf of Mexico. One person (the Toolpusher) died when the lifecraft capsized. All the other members managed to cling to the raft, but he was swept away and drowned.

1986: Jack-up rig "DYVI GAMMA" personnel were taken off, as a safety measure, due to a burning tanker that drifted to within 3 miles of the rig.

1987: When jack-up rig "ROWAN GORILLA II" broke loose whilst under tow, 2 crewmen were thrown overboard, but were quickly recovered.

1987: Another rig, the semi-submersible "SOVEREIGN EXPLORER", also broke adrift, just off the southern tip of Lands End (en route from the North Sea to the Gulf of Mexico). No one was in danger.

1988: A crane hook, on the production platform "WC", got entangled with part of the supply boat "STIRLING ESK". Due to a sudden wave surge, the crane was toppled, sending it crashing down on the supply vessel below, killing the crane driver and the deckhand on the supply vessel.

1988: Whilst under tow during a blizzard, the semi-submersible "SANTE FE RIG 135" broke loose and started drifting towards the production platform "COD". Helicopters from four different countries were used to airlift personnel off both rigs.

1988: The engine room of the jack-up accommodation rig "LAUNCELOT" flooded during bad weather. 20 persons were evacuated by Dutch based helicopters.

1988: A submerged submarine (U27) collided with anchor chain of the Norwegian production platform "OSEBERG B". All the 320 workers were evacuated across the gangway to the flotel, only to be returned at a later stage.

1988: The largest Brazilian production platform "ENCHOVA" was totally destroyed in a gas blow out and ensuing fire. Damage totaled US$300 million!

1988: A merchant ship hit the jack-up rig "GLOMAR LABRADOR I". 39 were safely evacuated by helicopter.

1988: Production platform "BRENT A" had an explosion on board (in the gas compression module). 11 non-essential workers were air-lifted to safety by helicopter.

1988: In the world's worst oil rig disaster, 167 people (out of the 232 people on board) were killed when Occidental Petroleum's "PIPER ALPHA" oil rig in the North Sea, suffered a series of explosions after an initial gas leak. 11 helicopters and 21 vessels were involved in the rescue mission. The financial loss is estimated to have been close to US$1.2 billion.

1988: One person (the radio operator that was overcome by smoke), was killed and 66 people rescued uninjured after American-owned "OCEAN ODYSSEY" drilling rig burst into flames in the North Sea, after it struck a gas pocket. 14 helicopters were involved in the rescue.

1988: Four workers were killed when a drill ship "VIKING EXPLORER", owned by Total Petroleum Co. of France, encountered a blow out, exploded and sank off the southeastern coast of Borneo. 87 men on board were rescued.

1988: Production platform "NINIAN CENTRAL" was shut down due to a gas leak from a fractured pipe. The 271 crew members were gathered to be evacuated, but the situation was declared safe before evacuation was deemed necessary.

1988: After breaking free from being towed, the jack up rig "ROWAN GORILLA I" listed and sank during a storm in the North Atlantic. The 27 strong crew were safely taken off the rig onto a life raft, where they spent 24 hours before being rescued. Besides sea sickness, all were in good condition.

1988: Three people were injured in an explosion and fire on an offshore oil platform owned by Union Oil Co. of California. The rig was operating on the Cook Inlet, southwest of Anchorage, Alaska.

1989: An explosion on a Penrod Drilling Co. oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico injured 12 workers, one seriously.

1989: Platform was shut down for a period on the production platform "BRENT D" when a pressure vessel ruptured in the gas compression module.

1989: Jack-up rig "SEDCO 252" suffered a big gas blow out and resultant fire just off the Indian coast. 54 crew was rescued, but 3 went missing - presumed dead.

1989: A drifting merchant ship was on a collision course with the "DAN EARL", a jack-up rig. As a precaution, 29 members were airlifted to safety. The ship was later taken in tow by salvage tugs.

1989: Production platform "TARTAN A" had a fire onboard, but it was quickly extinguished. The 180 men were mustered at the emergency stations as a precaution.

1989: A surge in pressure in the exploration well on the production platform "DUNLIN A" caused a shut down and non-essential members were taken aboard the vessel "SAFE FELICIA".

1989: A fire on board the production platform "EKOFISK P" was quickly extinguished by the sprinkler system and stand-by fire team. Nobody was injured.

1989: Production platform "CORMORANT A" experienced a gas leak and explosion. No fire was detected and no one was injured.

1991: Three people were injured in an explosion on "FULMAR ALPHA" platform in the North Sea, owned by Shell.

1992: A French-built Super Puma helicopter, carrying 15 workers and two crewmen, plunged into the North Sea seconds after taking off from "CORMORANT ALPHA" platform to make a short hop to an accommodation vessel. Eleven men died.

1995: Thirteen people were killed in an explosion on a Mobil oil rig off the coast of Nigeria. Many were injured.

1995: One person died and five were wounded in a Petrobras pipeline fire in Sao Paulo.

1996: Three people were killed and two injured in an explosion on a rig in the Morgan oil field in the Gulf of Suez.

1998: Two men died in an explosion on the "GLOMAR ARCTIC IV" rig.

1998:   One person died after plunging from the mobile drilling rig "PETROLIA", northeast of Aberdeen, Scotland.

1999: After apparently hitting an uncharted rock, the semi submersible "MIGHTY SERVANT 2" collapsed and sunk off Indonesia. 5 men were killed.

2000: As the rig cantilever was sliding out over the wellhead, the jack-up rig "AL MARIYAH" collapsed. Of the 68 people on board at the time, 8 were injured and 4 died in the accident.

2001: Two workers died from a fire on the "P-37", a Petrobras offshore natural gas platform in Campos Basin.

2001: Ten people were killed after explosions rocked the "P-36", world's biggest offshore oil platform belonging to Brazil's state oil firm Petrobras. It sank within three days.

Accidents do happen! I sincerely hope that the above statistics did not put you off too much from the ambitions to work on an oilrig. It's no use of thinking that working on a rig is all moonshine and roses - it's dangerous out there and you need to be aware of it. Attend all emergency drills/training sessions on the rig - it could/will save your life!

Be alert at all times - as you would be, crossing a street in your home town/city.

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