The proportions of these structures are just immense … This is the story of Britain’s North Sea oil rigs … A monumental piece of heavy engineering. Rob Bell, Building the Impossible s3e1: Oil Rig
Back in 1965 Britain’s first offshore rig called the Sea Gem was making its way out into the North Sea on its maiden voyage.
The almighty bang was the sound of two of the Sea Gem’s legs snapping. The 5,500 ton rig began to lurch into the freezing cold sea … It took half an hour for the entire rig to disappear beneath the waves. ibid.
These days as many as 11,000 people can be working out in the North Sea. ibid.
6th July 1988 about 120 miles off the coast of Aberdeen, the world’s deadliest offshore oil field disaster: Piper Alpha was the first production platform for the Piper Field … The Piper Alpha disaster claimed the lives of 167 men. ibid.
People can no longer afford to run cars that do twelve miles to the gallon. Petrol stations can no longer afford to fill up cars which tend to take twenty gallons. The monsters are dying of thirst; the energy crisis is killing them. This Week, Thames TV 1973
The energy crisis could not have come at a worst time. The signs are that America is about to experience the cruellest winter for many years. ibid.
Piper Alpha, one of the most productive oil platforms in the North Sea. It’s a city anchored in the ocean supporting more than 200 workers and pumping oil 24 hours a day. Then a routine day ends in disaster. 167 men perish in 1 hour and 30 minutes. Seconds from Disaster s1e10: Explosion in the North Sea
Piper Alpha has been in service for 12 years. Its main job is processing oil. ibid.
July 6th 1988: 10 p.m. Piper Alpha is shaken by a second colossal explosion captured on this video. A large section of the rig is engulfed in a roaring fireball. ibid.
By 12.45 a.m. the 20,000-ton Piper Alpha platform is gone. ibid.
One of America’s biggest oil refineries. 1,800 people are busy at work. Without warning, a massive explosion rocks the plant. The blast is felt 8 kilometres away. Seconds from Disaster s3e10: Texas Oil Explosion, National Geographic 2006
America’s third biggest refinery is left a smouldering wreck … 170 people are injured; 15 are dead; 11 died in the trailer. ibid.
Liquid was seen spewing out of the blowdown stack, and the pickup truck was parked less than nine metres away … A single spark from the running engine is all it would take to ignite the vapour. ibid.
April 20th 2010 5 p.m.: The Deepwater Horizon drilling rig: An explosion rips through an oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico. The survivors can’t stop the blowout and flee. 2 hours earlier a test showed the oil well was safe. Seconds from Disaster s5e5: The Deepwater Horizon
Crude oil and gas continue to surge from the well feeding the flames and explosions. The emergency disconnect has not worked. Most workers escape using the rig’s lifeboats. ibid.
The drill crew missing an early opportunity to realise the well could blow out. ibid.
Nitrogen foam: Halliburton do not expressly alert BP to the result … The cement foam is seriously unstable. ibid.