Posted on 04/24/2010 12:13:51 PM PDT by thackney
Life on an oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico has come a long way since the black gold was discovered underwater here 60 years ago.
Living for weeks on a platform the size of two football fields some 50 miles from the mainland can be comfortable and cushy, with good pay, catered cafeterias serving steak and spicy Cajun, lounges with pool tables and even mini movie theaters. At other times, it's a water world of hot metal, cramped sleeping quarters and skin-burning sun.
The hardest part is simply being away from family.
Karl Kleppinger Jr., an unflappable Desert Storm veteran who spent more than 10 years working on oil rigs, was a dedicated floorman who made about $75,000 a year working off the Louisiana coast on the Deepwater Horizon, which erupted into a giant fireball Tuesday night. He was among 11 workers presumed dead after Coast Guard officials suspended their search Friday, saying they believed the workers never made it off the state-of-the-art semi-submersible platform.
Kleppinger, 38, worked near the drilling, at the heart of the operation. He had been away from his family for about three weeks when he made his nightly call home just before the blast, but the long-distance banter was different this time, said his wife, Tracy.
"He couldn't get home soon enough this time. I don't know why," she said. "I can't explain, there was this feeling that things were bad. It was a string of 'I love yous, I need you home.' That basically was the final words to each other."
The accident was one of the worst oil rig disasters in the Gulf in decades. Crews were still trying to clean up the oil that spilled during the fire, but had to halt activities Saturday because of choppy seas, strong winds and rain.
The tragedy brought even more attention to safety for an industry known for its dangers, whether it's the helicopter ride to the platform or working on the rig itself.
"You could know how long someone had been in the oil industry by how many digits were missing," said Windell Curole, a Lafourche Parish levee manager whose father raised the family with the sweat of long days on oil rigs. "Back then, it was wildcatting in the truest sense. Crews didn't eat lunch they worked so hard."
There have been dozens of deaths and hundreds of injuries over the last several years, convincing the U.S. Minerals Management Service, which oversees the industry, that new safety procedures aimed at preventing human error were needed. The new rules are still being developed.
Companies say they go to great lengths to make life on the Gulf comfortable and safe. And officials with Transocean Ltd., which owned the Deepwater and was under contract by oil giant BP, point to the other 115 crew members who safely made it off the platform as evidence.
Bud Danenberger, former offshore regulations chief at the Minerals Management Service, said safety training is ingrained in the industry.
I wonder if that is true. Could easily be propaganda so the government can get more involved to make drilling more expensive and give the government more control. If there is only one human involved human error is likely at some point.
I spent a number of years on the fringes of the oil patch involved in safety and training for drillers, equipment manufacturers, etc. I know the industry is dangerous but I also know to how much effort that most of the oil companies, drillers and manufacturers go to make it safe. Injuries cost them a lot of money in medical expenses and time lost. It is a very expensive operation and safety is uppermost on their minds.
I’ve worked offshore. It’s good work if you are mentally strong enough to handle the separation. It’s also dangerous, but the kind of men who do that work, are the men you would want doing that work. They all know the risk, every minute of every day.
I never believed him since he was the most whining, lazy, good for nothing scoundrel I ever had the unfortunate opportunity to work with.
I''m sure if he did actually work an oil rig he would have been fish food after a week.
I would have personally tossed him over the side himself if my life and safety depended on him.
I had a buddy from college who quit and used his hobby to make a living. He was into welding and underwater scuba. He ended up in the Persian Gulf for three years doing underwater welding and repair. Very dangerouse work, and today he laughs about it. Stuck on a platform and unable to get off to spend his paycheck on booze and girls due to the Islamic rules. He ended up saving almost all of his paycheck. Came back to US with enough money to buy a condo and openned a scuba diving school in the 1980’s. Today he is doing very well because he still does welding repairs and marine engine repairs. His kids do alot of the navigation electronic repair and installation for private power boats. Not bad for a guy who never finished college. The only thing he was not good at was picking good wives, he is on his fourth one. Hope this one is what he is looking for.
“I wonder if that is true. Could easily be propaganda so the government can get more involved to make drilling more expensive and give the government more control. If there is only one human involved human error is likely at some point.”
I know someone who worked on a rig in the gulf, it paid well, but after his wife had a baby he decided to get a job on land (New Orleans)even though it paid less. I think that he was motivated partly by wanting to be near his new child and partly because as a new father he didn’t want to risk it anymore.
I found this online list of the deadliest disasters from ‘88 to 2007. I don’t know if the list is complete. The site that I took this from is very interesting.
Deadliest
1. Piper Alpha- 167 fatalities
Occidental’s Piper Alpha platform was destroyed by explosion and fire in 1988. 167 workers were killed in the blaze.
2.Alexander L. Kielland- 123 fatalities
In 1980, the accommodation rig Alexander L. Kielland capsized during a storm after a leg support brace failed.
3. Seacrest Drillship- 91 fatalities
The Seacrest drillship capsized in 1989 during Typhoon Gay, with the loss of 91 crew.
4. Ocean Ranger- 84 fatalities
A ballast control malfunction caused the Ocean Ranger to capsize during a ferocious storm in the North Atlantic in 1982, with the loss of all hands.
5. Glomar Java Sea Drillship- 81 fatalities
Another storm fatality, the Glomar Java Sea capsized and sank during Typhoon Lex in 1983 with the loss of all on board.
6. Bohai 2- 72 fatalities
In 1979, the jack-up Bohai 2 capsized and sank in a storm while on tow off the coast of China.
7. Brent Field Chinook Helicopter- 45 fatalities
A Chinook helicopter shuttle between the Brent Field and Sumburgh crashed into the North Sea in 1986 with only two survivors.
8. Enchova Central- 42 fatalities
During a blowout on the Enchova Central off Brazil, 42 workers lost their lives attempting to evacuate the platform.
9- C. P. Baker Drilling Barge- 22 fatalities
Built in 1962 using an uncommon catamaran design, the C. P. Baker drilling barge burned and sank after a shallow gas blowout.
9- Mumbai (Bombay) High North- 22 fatalities
A support vessel collided with Mumbai High North in 2005, rupturing a riser and causing a major fire that destroyed the platform.
9- Usumacinta- 22 fatalities
Storm winds caused the Usumacinta jack-up to strike the adjacent Kab-101 platform, resulting in a fatal evacuation and blowout in 2007.
http://www.oilrigdisasters.co.uk/
Thanks for the information, Mila. I thought the article was speaking specifically of US companies in the Gulf of Mexico or offshore USA. The information you found, and it is good information, is over a 50 year period and all over the world. Although, that is a lot of fatalities I am not sure it speaks directly to my question.
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