BP oil spill: Emergency alarms were disabled to avoid waking up people at night
July 24th, 2010 - 1:33 pm ICT by ANILondon, July 24 (ANI): The testimony of an electronics technician Michael Williams who worked for Transocean, the Geneva-based company that owned the rig, that emergency alarms on board the Deepwater Horizon were disabled weeks before it exploded, killing 11 workers and spewing tens of thousands of gallons of oil into the Gulf of Mexico, has emerged as damning evidence that the safety systems may have been compromised.
According to The Telegraph, the alarm, which could have detected a build-up in natural gas and closed parts of the rig was disarmed so it would not wake people up at night.
“The general alarm was inhibited, the system had been disabled because rig managers did not want people woken up at 3am with false alarms,” Williams said.
The alarm was designed to automatically shut air vents into engine rooms. During the accident, natural gas is believed to have been sucked into the engines, causing them to speed up and explode, the paper said.
He also alleged that in 2009, the system was a “wreck” when he started working on the rig with many faulty detectors, which he tried to repair, but faced problems with malfunctioning equipment.
However, Transocean has issued a statement saying that switching off the main alarm had not jeopardised safety on the rig as there were “hundreds” of other alarms in operation.
“The general alarm configuration on the Deepwater Horizon was intentional and conforms to accepted maritime practices, including those on some Navy and Coast Guard vessels. It was not a safety oversight or done as a matter of convenience,” the company said.
“The alarm system on every large maritime vessel, including the Deepwater Horizon, is zone based. The Deepwater Horizon had hundreds of individual fire and gas alarms, all of which were tested, in good condition, not bypassed and monitored from the bridge,” it added.
Meanwhile, the British oil giant is expected to announce its chief executive Tony Hayward’s exit by July 27, 2010, when the company is due to publish its interim results. (ANI)
- "Poor safety culture" onboard Deepwater Horizon led to last year's massive Gulf oil spill - Apr 23, 2011
- Transocean gives bonuses for 'safety' after Gulf of Mexico oil spill - Apr 04, 2011
- Eight failures that led to Gulf oil spill - Sep 09, 2010
- BP sues Cameron, Deepwater Horizon owner Transocean over Gulf of Mexico oil spill - Apr 21, 2011
- US blames BP's poor decisions for Gulf oil spill - Sep 15, 2011
- US allows BP to drill new Gulf deepwater wells - Oct 22, 2011
- Maritime laws protecting BP, not Gulf Coast residents - American Association for Justice - May 28, 2010
- BP seeks to resume drilling in Gulf of Mexico - Apr 04, 2011
- Gulf oil spill: Ex-BP boss Hayward may be charged with manslaughter - Mar 30, 2011
- Obama extends drilling halt as top-kill stops oil leak - May 28, 2010
- BP releases a 193 page investigative report into the Gulf oilrig mishap - Sep 09, 2010
- Cleanup to resume at US oil spill - Jul 25, 2010
- Lessons that the Gulf Oil spill taught us - Jan 08, 2011
- Gulf Oil Blowout Focused On In '60 Minutes' - May 17, 2010
- BP's 'cost-cutting decisions' blamed for 'avoidable' Gulf of Mexico oil spill - Jan 06, 2011
Tags: 3am, air vents, alarm configuration, alarm system, bp oil spill, british oil, coast guard vessels, electronics technician, emergency alarms, execu, false alarms, gas alarms, gulf of mexico, michael williams, oil giant, safety on the rig, safety oversight, safety systems, statement saying that, transocean
