A December 1 oil rig explosion off the Louisiana coast that has injured at least three workers illustrates the hazardous and often deadly work conditions that maritime workers face every day, say the Houston maritime injury lawyers of Arnold & Itkin LLP.
According to the U.S. Coast Guard website, the December 1 rig fire occurred roughly 20 miles south of New Orleans in Bayout Perot. The work-over rig, owned by Grosse Tete, was located in inland waters and not in the Gulf of Mexico. Louisiana Delta Oil reported the incident.
The Coast Guard has reported that three injured crew members were removed from the rig and transported to West Jefferson Medical Center in Marrero, Louisiana.
The extent of their injuries is unknown. Several news organizations have reported that at least two workers were burned.
The fire has stopped, and a Coast Guard flyover showed no signs of environmental pollution.
Reuters has reported that the rig was converting an inactive gas well for injection disposal of waste saltwater.
It s a shame to see yet another tragedy happen on one of our region s drilling rigs, says Kurt Arnold, a partner in the Houston-based maritime law firm, which represents injured offshore workers in Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama. It s our sincere hope that the workers and their families are getting the care and attention they need right now.
The series of oil rig explosions we ve seen in recent months shows that drilling companies are still not doing enough to make sure their workers are safe," Arnold said.
The explosion comes on the heels of a September 2 oil rig explosion in the Gulf of Mexico on a Mariner Energy offshore oil platform and the April 20 explosion on the Deepwater Horizon rig in the gulf, which killed 11 crew members and caused the worst oil spill in U.S. history (often called the BP oil spill ).
We need better safety measures and practices to be in place to keep these incidents from happening, says maritime attorney Jason Itkin, a partner of Arnold & Itkin, which is representing several Transocean workers who were injured in the Deepwater Horizon explosion.
Injured oil workers may be compensated for their injuries by filing claims under various federal laws, including the Jones Act, Itkin says, but we need to be more proactive in protecting them.
According to the U.S. Coast Guard website, the December 1 rig fire occurred roughly 20 miles south of New Orleans in Bayout Perot. The work-over rig, owned by Grosse Tete, was located in inland waters and not in the Gulf of Mexico. Louisiana Delta Oil reported the incident.
The Coast Guard has reported that three injured crew members were removed from the rig and transported to West Jefferson Medical Center in Marrero, Louisiana.
The extent of their injuries is unknown. Several news organizations have reported that at least two workers were burned.
The fire has stopped, and a Coast Guard flyover showed no signs of environmental pollution.
Reuters has reported that the rig was converting an inactive gas well for injection disposal of waste saltwater.
It s a shame to see yet another tragedy happen on one of our region s drilling rigs, says Kurt Arnold, a partner in the Houston-based maritime law firm, which represents injured offshore workers in Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama. It s our sincere hope that the workers and their families are getting the care and attention they need right now.
The series of oil rig explosions we ve seen in recent months shows that drilling companies are still not doing enough to make sure their workers are safe," Arnold said.
The explosion comes on the heels of a September 2 oil rig explosion in the Gulf of Mexico on a Mariner Energy offshore oil platform and the April 20 explosion on the Deepwater Horizon rig in the gulf, which killed 11 crew members and caused the worst oil spill in U.S. history (often called the BP oil spill ).
We need better safety measures and practices to be in place to keep these incidents from happening, says maritime attorney Jason Itkin, a partner of Arnold & Itkin, which is representing several Transocean workers who were injured in the Deepwater Horizon explosion.
Injured oil workers may be compensated for their injuries by filing claims under various federal laws, including the Jones Act, Itkin says, but we need to be more proactive in protecting them.
