Below, our Houston injury lawyers report on the most significant oil rig fires and explosions in the 20th and 21st centuries. If you have questions about your own case, give us a call today.
The Santa Barbara Oil Spill (January 1969)
In January 1969, Union Oil began drilling a fifth oil well on their offshore Platform A, just over five miles from the coast of Santa Barbara, CA. On the morning of January 28, the well blew out, spewing oil and gas. The explosion cracked the sea floor in 5 places and released 1,000 gallons of oil an hour. A second blow out in a different well followed on February 24th. Eventually, the California coastline would be devastated by 3 million gallons of crude—the largest oil spill in the nation’s history until the Exxon Valdez 20 years later. The destruction was both so immense and so visible that it sparked the environmental advocacy movement as we know it. The spill led to the signing of the National Environmental Policy Act, which required the creation of environmental impact reports on major projects. The spill created a cultural moment, too. For the first time, regular Americans were deeply concerned with environmental health. The following year marked the first time the U.S. celebrated Earth Day.
The Alexander L. Kielland Disaster (March 1980)
In March 1980, one of the deadliest oil rig accidents in history occurred due to a fatigue crack caused by a bad weld job 6mm wide. On March 27, more than 200 oil rig workers were aboard the Alexander L. Kielland, a “floating hotel” for off-duty operators that included a cinema among its amenities. The oil platform was owned by Stavanger Drilling Company, but it was being used by Phillips Petroleum at the time.
In the evening, while the men were enjoying their off hours, the wind outside had picked up to 45 miles per hour with 40-foot waves. Around 6:30 PM, the men reported hearing a loud crack—later determined to be the snapping of 5 anchor cables. The sixth cable barely held, preventing the platform from capsizing. However, because there was a poor command structure aboard the Kielland, most of the men did not attempt to escape the platform. Within 20 minutes, the sixth anchor cable snapped and the platform capsized. Of the seven 50-man lifeboats and twenty 20-man rafts, only 1 lifeboat and 2 rafts were able to release from the lowering cables. Of the 212 men aboard, 123 were killed. The tragedy led to new requirements for lifeboat hooks and new command structures to facilitate faster abandonment of sinking vessels.
The Ocean Ranger Disaster (February 1982)
The Ocean Ranger was a mobile offshore drilling rig that sank near Canada in February 1982 while drilling an exploratory well for Mobil Oil of Canada. The evening of February 14, 1982, Ocean Ranger and nearby vessels were hit by a rogue wave. The oil platform was heard over the radio describing how a porthole window was broken, allowing water to enter the ballast control room. The vessel was getting hit by waves 65 feet or higher, while the porthole window was only at 28 feet. After midnight, Ocean Ranger reported they were listing 10-15 degrees.
At around 1 AM, local authorities and Mobil helicopters were alerted to the situation. All nearby vessels were asked to assist the platform, which was still leaning 10 degrees to the left. The Ocean Ranger transmitted a final message that they were abandoning ship.
All 84 of the crew, including 46 Mobil employees and 38 contractors, were killed. Investigators found that nearby vessels were not equipped to rescue casualties from the sea, especially in severe weather, so most of the crew died from drowning or hypothermia.
The Deepwater Horizon Disaster (April 2010)
The destruction of the Deepwater Horizon is one of the worst offshore disasters in recent memory. The rig, owned by Transocean and drilling for BP, exploded and caught fire on April 20, 2010 off the Louisiana coast. The oil rig explosion was preceded by numerous red flags. In 2009, BP engineers were concerned that the materials they wanted to use for drilling would buckle under pressure. Rig workers believed they would be fired for raising safety concerns, but many were concerned that the equipment was unreliable and required maintenance.
In March 2010, an accident went unreported that damaged the blowout preventer (which had gone uninspected since 2005). On the night of the explosion, BP engineers saw warning signs hours before the blowout that the well was going to explode. At 9:56 PM, a bubble of methane gas traveled up the drill column, expanding as it climbed. Survivors described two “vibrations” prior to the fire starting.
The oil rig fire burned for over a day before the Deepwater Horizon sank. Of the 126 people onboard, 11 were killed and 17 were transported to trauma centers. Other workers were transported to a hotel in Kenner, Louisiana where they were asked to sign a waiver asserting that they were not injured. Workers reported feeling as though they were being forced to sign the waiver before being given what they needed.
Transocean denied any allegations that they forced workers to sign any waivers.
- June 1979
Mexico's government-owned oil company, Pemex, used a semi-submersible drilling rig to create Ixtoc I, an exploratory oil well 62 miles off the coast of Campeche, Mexico. On June 3, the well experienced a blowout, initially leaking 30,000 barrels of oil into the gulf each day. Though various efforts were undertaken to lessen the leakage, the spill remained uncontained until March 1980. - August 1984 & April 1988
Petrobras' Enchova drilling platform, operating in the Campos Basin near Rio de Janeiro, Brazil experienced its first disaster in 1984 when a blowout on the morning of August 16 led to an explosion and fire. 42 workers died in the evacuation, including 36 who fell from a lifeboat when its mechanism failed. Less than four years later, in April 1988, the well suffered a gas blowout while being converted from oil to gas. The drill pipe was forced out of the well and struck a platform leg, causing sparks to ignite the gas. The resulting fire burned for 31 days, but the crew members were able to abandon the platform without casualty. - July 1988
Occidental Petroleum's Piper Alpha oil production platform exploded in the North Sea after a series of malfunctioning parts and a small gas leak ignited under pressure. Eventually, the pipeline connecting Piper to the Claymore Platform burst and the Piper slipped into the sea. Of the 224 crewmembers, 165 were killed and 2 rescue vessel crewmen also perished. Only 59 individuals survived. At the time of the accident, the Piper was contributing approximately 10% of the North Sea's oil and gas production. - November 1989
Typhoon Gay overtook the Seacrest, a drilling ship belonging to UNOCAL (which merged with Chevron in 2005.) The Seacrest capsized and floated for several days before sinking, killing 91 of the 97 crewmembers. - March 2001
Petrobras' P-36 oil platform, the largest semi-submersible in the world at the time, experienced two back-to-back explosions which killed 11 of the 175 workers. After the explosions, the platform began to list, finally sinking five days later. - July 2005
A multi-purpose support vessel crashed into Indian government-owned Mumbai High North platform. An explosion and massive fire resulted. The platform was evacuated and destroyed within two hours. 22 of the 384 workers onboard were killed. - August 2009
Oil began to leak from Seadrill's West Atlas rig in the Timor Sea off the coast of Australia. All workers were evacuated, but the resulting oil slick spreads over 2300 square miles of water, killing marine life in affected areas. The leak was not plugged until 11/1. - September 2010
Mariner Energy's Vermillion Oil Rig 380 exploded off the coast of Louisiana, just 200 miles east of the site where the Deepwater Horizon tragedy occurred. A supply ship rescued all 13 crewmembers. None were seriously injured. - January 2012
Chevron Nigeria Limited oil rig experienced an explosion six miles off the coast of the African nation. The fire was still burning three days later. As of January 20, 2012, two workers were still missing and presumed dead. Fish were dying in large numbers, and coastal residents were scared to eat living marine animals as they may have been contaminated. - February 2015
An oil rig owned by Petrobras exploded off of the Brazilian coast. The incident killed 5 workers and injured more than 25 others. - April 2015
A Gulf of Mexico oil rig explosion killed 4 workers and injured 45 others. Pemex operated the rig. Approximately 300 workers were evacuated from the platform after the fire broke out overnight. - December 2015
A fire broke out in the Gunashli oilfield after a storm damaged a high-pressure subsea gas pipeline. The fire spread to multiple wells; eventually, production was suspended, pipelines closed, and electricity shut off. More than 60 workers were onboard at the time of the incident. The Ministry of Emergency Situations of Azerbaijan reported 10 killed, 20 missing, and 9 hospitalized.
Put Top-Rated Trial Attorneys on Your Side. Call (888) 493-1629 Today.
Oil drilling companies are sued all the time, but there are only a few law firms that they take seriously. Arnold & Itkin LLP is one of those firms. We have gone head-to-head against Transocean, BP, Mobil, and other industry titans and helped our clients win massive results. When an oil rig explodes, massive results are the minimum that our clients deserve for their lost lives, ruined careers, and life-changing medical needs.
Our lawyers represented more members of the Deepwater Horizon crew than any other firm, securing record-setting settlements on their behalf. When the El Faro sank in 2015, we represented multiple widows who lost their loved ones, helping them get justice for the ways their husbands died at sea. Arnold & Itkin has stood up for hundreds of injured workers, winning billions of dollars for our clients in some of the highest-profile offshore cases in recent history. When injured offshore workers need someone to help them secure lost wages, recover medical expenses, and rebuild their future, they call us. In return, we pour every resource into giving them the best possible chance for recovery.
Call (888) 493-1629 or contact us online to review your case for free with an attorney. Our clients don’t pay unless we win, so learn about your options today.
