Saturday, December 05, 2015

32 Workers Killed as Oil Platform Catches Fire in the Caspian Sea

The head of an independent committee reported on Saturday that 32 workers were killed and 42 others were rescued when an offshore oil platform operated by SOCAR caught fire in the Caspian Sea. SOCAR is Azerbaijan's energy company.

According to Mirvari Gakhramanly, head of Azerbaijan's Oil Workers' Rights Protection Committee, the fire on the platform in the Guneshli oil field has been put out. SOCAR said the fire broke out when a gas pipeline was damaged by strong wind. The company added that rescue operations were being hampered by a severe storm in the area.

One of the workers called a Reuters and said that there were 84 people trapped in the platform. The worker opted for anonymity and it was not clear if his statement is now out of date. SOCAR posted on its Facebook page on Saturday that 26 workers had been rescued, but it did not provide details if there were fatalities or how many people were on the platform.

Approximately 60% of SOCAR's oil production passes through the platform where the blaze broke out. This means the company's output will be temporarily affected. A huge volume of Azerbaijan's oil is produced elsewhere, including on fields operated by British oil giant BP.

In a related incident, SOCAR reported on Friday that three of its workers went missing from another of its oil platforms in the Caspian following an accident during the storm. As of Saturday, the workers remained unaccounted for. 

 ubalert.com
 5/12/15
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2 comments:

  1. Rescuers have evacuated 32 people from a burning oil rig in Azerbaijan’s sector of the Caspian Sea, a special committee on the accident reported on Saturday...

    Rescue works are under way. They feature helicopters of the emergencies ministry and Azerbaijan’s vessels. The rescue process is very complicated as the wind speed reaches 37 m/sec and the sea waves are about 10 metres high.

    As the fire began, there were 42 people on the rig. However, other sources say about 63 people.

    The fire on the rig began on Friday following some problems with the gas line.
    http://tass.ru/en/society/841831

    ReplyDelete
  2. Nach einem schweren Brand an einer aserbaidschanischen Bohrinsel im Kaspischen Meer gelten rund 30 Arbeiter als vermisst...

    Das teilte Mirwari Gachramanly, Vorsitzende des Komitees zum Schutz der Ölarbeiter Aserbaidschans, am Samstag RIA Novosti telefonisch mit.

    Nach Angaben des Ölkonzerns SOCAR brach das Feuer am späten Freitagabend infolge eines Lecks an einer Gasleitung. 32 Menschen konnten in Sicherheit gebracht werden. Gachramanly zufolge kenterte ein Rettungsboot mit mehr als 30 Menschen bei einem Rettungsversuch. Nur zwei von ihnen seien lebend geborgen worden. „Solange die Leichen der anderen nicht gefunden wurden, sprechen wir nicht von Todesopfern“, sagte sie.

    Zum Zeit des Unglücks hielten sich etwa 84 Ölarbeiter auf der Bohrinsel auf. Die Rettungsarbeiten werden durch hohen Wellengang und einer Windgeschwindigkeit von bis zu 40 Metern in der Sekunde erschwert.
    de.sputniknews.com

    ReplyDelete

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