Transocean has done it again.
Six years ago, I represented a young man who was on a Transocean rig that blew up near Galveston, Texas. One person died in the explosion and many more were injured.
Sadly, it’s happened again. Last night, a rig owned by Transocean, exploded and caught on fire off the coast of Louisiana. This Transocean oil rig accident left seven maritime workers injured and another 11 missing.
The explosion on the oil rig, Deepwater Horizon, occurred around 10:00 PM on Tuesday, April 20, 2010, approximately 52 miles off of Louisiana’s tip. The incident left seventeen workers injured and rescue crews are frantically searching for 11 other maritime workers who have been reported as missing.
The Deepwater Horizon is 396 feet long and 256 feet wide. The oil rig was built in 2001 by Hyundai Heavy Industries Shipyard in South Korea.
What is so unfortunate about this event is that it has happened before. One would assume that after the rig explosion six years ago, Transocean would have taken significant measures to improve the safety of its workers.
Our prayers are with the missing workers, their families, and the rescue teams that are trying to find them.
I am also offering free copies of any of my maritime books for injured workers and their families if they want them, no strings attached. Click here to order the books.
As someone who has advocated increased measures for maritime safety and represented many injured Transocean employees, I can tell you I will be following this story closely and looking for answers.
UPDATE 4/22/2010:
The Transocean oil rig that has been burning for more than a day, following a massive explosion, has finally sank into the Gulf of Mexico. Eleven workers are still missing from the Deepwater Horizon.
According to Coast Guard Petty Officer Katherine McNamara, supply vessels had been dousing the rig with water, as they tried to control the fire enough to keep the Deepwater Horizon afloat, but they couldn’t keep it from sinking.
One family member stated that they were told that it doesn’t look like any of the missing workers survived the blast on Tuesday evening. The area has been searched by air 12 times and by sea five times, but there is little hope that these workers will be found at this point.
Carolyn Kemp, the grandmother of Roy Wyatt Kemp, who is among the missing, said, “they’re assuming all those men who were on the platform are dead. That’s the last we’ve heard.”
UPDATE 4/23/2010:
The search for the 11 missing workers following the Transocean rig explosion has been called off. According to Rear Adm. Mary Landry, commander of the Coast Guard’s 8th District, with 67-degree water temperatures, the likelihood of finding survivors is almost zero.
About a 2,000-square-mile area was searched numerous times by air and sea. A damaged life capsule was discovered, but there was no one inside.
The missing workers include nine Transocean employees and two contractors.
Category: BP Oil Spill Injury Claims
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