subject: Alpha Piper: 3 Things To Remember [print this page] Examine the case of the Alexander Kielland, one of the most disastrous incidents in the offshore oil exploration industry. One element was conspicuously missing: the question of fire Piper Alpha was the worst oil disaster in terms of lives lost. It had been used as an oil platform since 1976, and later gas pipelines were built to accommodate new demands. This meant that dangerous operations, once situated the furthest away from personnel areas, were relocated.
*When Gas Leaks Happen All The Time: There was a small gas leak, which is a natural occurrence on platforms like this. A pump was being fixed when the day shift ended, but the engineer saw that the pump man was busy so he didn't tell him that the pump mustn't be switched on. The auto fire-fighting pumps were set on manual because divers were in the water.
Another pump failed. This one is responsible for the whole platform's electricity supply, and reserve power could only last for minutes. In confusion, both were switched on, and in the ensuing fire the control room since it was designed to withstand oil fires but not gas explosions. Without a way to coordinate evacuation, subsequent events killed 165 people.
*What Did We Learn From It? In the Kielland the command chain proved vulnerable; in Alpha Piper, the person-in-charge was clearly identified. Unfortunately he was killed in the very first explosion. By the time rescue helicopters arrived the flames were 100 metres in height and burnt for three weeks.
There is no individual task on an oil platform. The chain of events began when maintenance work was carried out on a pump and its safety valve at the same time. Of course, the operator was deemed to be negligent in failing to devise rigorous maintenance and safety procedures, but charges couldn't be brought forward.
*The Crew Lives On: You can rest assured that the survivors ploughed on though. In a psychological research survey, they felt they've learnt things about themselves and their values. They realised that they had strengths that they didn't know they had, and heroes abounded on that day.
These are disasters that shan't happen again. Other things can and will go wrong in this industry, in our never-ending battle with nature for a better future of our own. And what's wrong with that?
Give it a go, a life out there in the last frontier.
Hopefully, like the vast majority of offshore oil platform workers, you will never encounter these tragedies. But it's not whether these things will happen that counts, but rather what we choose to do with our lives in spite of them.
