Explosion: Intensive rescue search for SEPCOL FPSO crew continues in Niger Delta
By Emeka Ugwuanyi
After 24 hours The Trinity, a floating production, storage and offloading vessel (FPSO), went up in flames at the offshore terminal of Ukpokiti oil field located in oil mining lease (OML) 108, Escravos, Ugborodo, Warri Southwest Local Government Area of Delta State, no survival has been reportedly confirmed by the rescue search team.
The FPSO, The Trinity, worked for Shebah Exploration & Production Company Limited (SEPCOL) in Receivership caught fire in the early hours of Wednesday, February 2, 2022.
A statement signed by the company’s Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Ikemefuna Okafor, noted that the cause of the explosion is currently being investigated and the company is working with necessary parties to contain the situation.
Okafor said: “At this time there are no reported fatalities, but we can confirm there were ten crew men on board the vessel prior to the incident and we are prioritising investigations with respect to their safety and security.
“We appreciate the assistance provided us by the Clean Nigeria Associates, the Chevron team operating in the nearby Escravos facility and our community stakeholders as well as fishermen, who have been of tremendous assistance since the incident happened.
“We have duly notified all relevant authorities and we appeal to the members of the public to stay away from the area while our Crisis Management Team continues to monitor the situation and update all stakeholders with new information as the investigation evolves.”
However, a source familiar with the company’s operation and the incident told The Business Intelligence Africa (TBI Africa) that the vessel had on board 15 crew members, adding that three persons were alleged to have survived while 12 persons are yet uncounted for.
The source said the incident occurred on Wednesday, February 2 at few minutes to 1.00am, we heard a loud explosion, which allegedly caused serious fear among workers in oil facilities close as they helplessly watched the fire rage.
The source further said: “We will leverage this incident to talk about the discrimination, deprivation and ill treatment to contract workers in the multinational, national and indigenous oil companies. Hazards and risks on the job are for all workers but do not reflect in the pay and conditions of contract staff. It is only regular employees that are adequately rewarded.”
