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Oil rig workers rescued after fire

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  • Oil rig workers rescued after fire

    London - Some 159 people on Sunday morning were being evacuated after a fire on an oil platform in the North Sea, the BBC reported. A "very serious" fire had broken out at 0830 GMT on the Thistle Alpha platform, some 190 kilometres north-east of Sumburgh in the Shetland Islands.

    Eight rescue helicopters were at the scene to take people to safety, it was said.

    Forty-four people had already been airlifted to safety, while no casualties had been reported so far, a spokesman for the Royal Air Force (RAF) in Kinloss said.

    "We are conducting a de-manning of all non-essential personnel due to a fire on board the rig," a coastguard spokesman said.

    The crews were being airlifted to three neighbouring platforms by helicopters from the RAF, coastguard and other rigs in the area as well as several Norwegian helicopters.

    The platform is operated by Swedish-based Lundin Petroleum, which is involved in worldwide oil exploration and production.

    A Petrofac spokeswoman confirmed on behalf of Lundin Britain that it was "currently investigating an incident involving this installation."

    Petrofac is an international service provider to the oil and gas industry.

    "As a precautionary measure the appropriate emergency procedures have been activated and the relevant authorities have been notified," the spokeswoman added.


    Welcome to the Earth Times. Environmental news and blogs with eco-friendly store.
    Last edited by Goldie fish; 25 November 2007, 12:03.


    Catch-22 says they have a right to do anything we can't stop them from doing.

  • #2
    A busy morning then for D Flight of 202 Squadron, and 202 or 120 Squadron.

    I wonder if both S-92's at Sumburgh were also tasked.

    Comment


    • #3
      Fires out now, no-one hurt.

      Is an oil rig 'standby vessel' there for safety purposes as well as delivering stores etc ?

      ie are the companys required to have vessels near their rigs for insurance purposes in the event of emergencies ?
      'History is a vast early warning system'. Norman Cousins

      Comment


      • #4
        Yes, is the short answer. All those vessels are equipped as firefighting tugs. They remain with the rig at all times. They bring stores out and remain on scene, while another similar vessel rotates home.

        This is one of the vessels that was involved in standby/support for the Rig in question.

        Last edited by Goldie fish; 25 November 2007, 15:48.


        Catch-22 says they have a right to do anything we can't stop them from doing.

        Comment


        • #5
          Similar support vessel on station off our south east coast, this summer.
          Attached Files

          Comment


          • #6
            Thats an odd little vessel. I have photos of her that I intend to put up here at a later stage. Very unusual design. Voith Schneider propelled exclusively.


            Catch-22 says they have a right to do anything we can't stop them from doing.

            Comment


            • #7
              Originally posted by Goldie fish View Post
              Thats an odd little vessel. I have photos of her that I intend to put up here at a later stage. Very unusual design. Voith Schneider propelled exclusively.
              Would you happen to know the name of the rig? I was surprised to see it as I had nothing marked on the charts at the time.

              Comment


              • #8
                Originally posted by Goldie fish View Post
                Yes, is the short answer. All those vessels are equipped as firefighting tugs. They remain with the rig at all times.
                Thanks, always wondered about that.
                'History is a vast early warning system'. Norman Cousins

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                • #9
                  Originally posted by Test Pilot View Post
                  Would you happen to know the name of the rig? I was surprised to see it as I had nothing marked on the charts at the time.
                  is it the petrolia rig for Island oil and gas?

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    My understanding is that the standy by vessel remains on scene at all times, the crew of which is then rotated by either heli from the rig or a rig support vessel. The support and standy vessel are very different in setup and design. The standy by can be anything from a purpose built vessel to a converted fishing vessel and mainly consists of fire fighting and medical capabilities while the support (supply) vessel on the other hand is optimised for cargo operations. Some times the 2 may cross each others roles but in general I think you will find that the support vessels are too big and expensive to be sitting around doing nothing.

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Hi all
                      there are often smaller boats on site for running around between platforms.In the Gulf, we used 120 foot twin diesel crew boats, with a small open rear deck for crew transport, resupply and carriage of smaller, easily loaded tols and gear.They were only ever out of the field when another boat was on hand to replace them.There were also a few 20/30 foot motor boats for general duties.
                      regards
                      GttC

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Originally posted by Herald View Post
                        is it the petrolia rig for Island oil and gas?
                        Thanks for that Herald and welcome to the asylum.

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          Originally posted by Goldie fish View Post
                          Thats an odd little vessel. I have photos of her that I intend to put up here at a later stage. Very unusual design. Voith Schneider propelled exclusively.
                          Viking Sentinel at Cork Dockyard.

                          Anyone know what the gantry with the net is for?



                          Catch-22 says they have a right to do anything we can't stop them from doing.

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            I know the vessels stay within charging distance on a normal day but if workers are working over the sides of the rig they close right in for close standby in case a man ends up in the water. I have never seen the net type device before but possibily it is for catching dropped tools. I would imagine it is a bit inacurate for catching people but you never know.

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              It looks like it can be lowered into the water, like some sort of scoop.


                              Catch-22 says they have a right to do anything we can't stop them from doing.

                              Comment

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