The fire that was raging on the West Delta 32 oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico has been extinguished, but the exact details surrounding the explosion remain unclear.
Last week, an explosion on the rig while crews were undergoing maintenance procedures on the vessel led to a fire, leaving 11 workers injured with two other workers missing. Although initial reports claimed that both the missing crew members had died, it has now been established that only one body has been found.
A diver working for Black Elk Energy, the energy company that operated the West Delta 32 rig, found the body of one of the missing workers underneath the oil rig on Monday. The other worker is not yet accounted for, and the US Coast Guard is continuing on a search for the worker.
Many details surrounding the explosion remain cloudy, with sources contradicting as to how many workers were on the rig at the time of the explosion. However it appears that there were between 22 and 24 people on board the platform.
The exact cause of the explosion is not yet known. The coast guard has stated that it is too early to say equivocally what led to the incident, however initial reports show that it was likely that an oil pipe was hit while the workers were performing construction work on the platform. According to reports from survivors, workers were using torches to cut through an oil line shortly before the explosion occurred. However, authorities from Grand Isle Shipyard, who employed 14 of the workers on the platform, have said that these reports are inaccurate.
According to Grand Isle Shipyard, it would have been against the company’s safety standards for workers to use a welding torch to cut through gas lines on the platform.
Two of the injured workers remain in a critical condition in hospital, suffering from major second and third degree burns. The workers are currently being treated in Baton Rouge Hospital. Despite their serious condition, a spokesperson from the hospital said that doctors remain positive about the men’s recovery.
It is not yet clear what the environmental impact of the explosion will be, which comes just over a year after the disaster Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the gulf. However according to CNN, there may be up to 28 gallons of oil released into the waters of the gulf. This is still considered a small and containable oil spill however, and is not expected to led to widespread environmental effects.
