[Leica] IMG: Oil rig tragedy

[mark at whitedogs.co.uk (Mark Pope)]

Larry,

a fascinating insight into what it's like to work on one of these 
behemoths - Like most people, I have no real idea what's involved in 
getting the stuff out of the ground or sea bed and into my car or 
whatever.

I get the impression that nobody yet has a real idea of the impact of 
what's happened in the Gulf of Mexico.  It seems as if the original 
estimates for the amount of oil spilling into the gulf were off by a 
factor of five and I wouldn't be surprised if they went up again.

I hope and pray that the authorities and BP get it all under control as 
soon as possible.

'Only' losing 11 souls is 11 too many in my book.  The rig can be 
rebuilt and hopefully, the environment and dependent economies will 
recover.  Eventually.


Mark Pope,
Swindon, Wilts
UK

Homepage               http://www.monomagic.co.uk
Blog                   http://www.monomagic.co.uk/blog
Picture a week (2010)  http://www.monomagic.co.uk/index.php?gallery=paw/2010
Picture a week (2009)  http://www.monomagic.co.uk/index.php?gallery=paw/2009
                (2008) 
http://www.monomagic.co.uk/index.php?gallery=paw/2008


Lawrence Zeitlin wrote:
> Luggers who have been paying attention to the news are aware of the tragedy
> of the Transocean drilling rig Deepwater Horizon in the Gulf of Mexico. The
> rig exploded, burned, and eventually sank in several thousand feet of 
> water.
> The leaking oil will probably cause an environmental catastrophe on the 
> Gulf
> shoreline. Fortunately  of the 126 crew aboard, only 11 were lost. This
> tragedy was of personal relevance to me. From 1975 through the mid 80s I
> served as a consultant to the offshore oil industry and spent considerable
> time aboard drill rigs both in the Gulf and in the North Sea. All of us 
> were
> aware of the constant risk of fire and explosion although we tried to put 
> it
> out of our minds.
> 
> 
> Modern offshore oil drilling rigs are enormous structures with decks twice
> the size of a football field. They come in four types; platform rigs which
> are perched on towers and anchored to the bottom; jackup rigs which are
> large floating barges, towed into position and then raised up to drilling
> position by huge jacks; semi submersibles which are floating structures
> towed into position, partially filled with water, and held in place by
> anchors; and drill ships which are primarily used for deep water
> exploration. The Transocean rig was one of the world's largest semi
> submersibles. Despite the size and high technology, the rigs only exist to
> let a team of rugged men operate drilling equipment similar to that used on
> land. The rigs operate day and night. Each of two shifts works a
> backbreaking, labor intensive, 12 hour a day job. Most drill crews work for
> two weeks straight then are airlifted back to shore while another crew 
> takes
> their place. The drill crews need support and maintenance personnel, cooks,
> crane operators, etc. so a compliment of 100 or so persons on a modern rig
> is the norm.
> 
> 
> Looking through my files, I uncovered some pictures I took in 1979 on the
> Cognac rig in the Gulf of Mexico. It is the world's largest platform drill
> rig, perched on a tower 1025 feet tall over the Cognac oil field. I was not
> there to take pictures so the photos are mostly grab shots taken with a
> Rollei 35 on a grey, overcast day. Unspotted. Be charitable.
> 
> 
> http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Larry+Z/_quot_Tripping_quot_+the+drill+pipe+1.jpg.html
> 
> http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Larry+Z/_quot_Tripping_quot_+the+drill+pipe+2.jpg.html
> 
> http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Larry+Z/_quot_Tripping_quot_+the+drill+pipe+3.jpg.html
> 
> http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Larry+Z/The+derrickman.jpg.html
> 
> http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Larry+Z/Inside+of+derrick.jpg.html
> 
> http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Larry+Z/Derrick+structure.jpg.html
> 
> http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Larry+Z/Elevated+deck+area.jpg.html
> 
> http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Larry+Z/Loading+crane.jpg.html
> 
> http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Larry+Z/Larry+Z+as+crane+operator.jpg.html
> 
> http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Larry+Z/Rescue+capsule.jpg.html
> 
> http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Larry+Z/Discussion+with+the+boss.jpg.html
> 
> http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Larry+Z/The+valve+room.jpg.html
> 
> 
> Larry Z
> 
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