UK: Crane collapse injures two workers and costs company £535,000

The following is an abridgement of an article appearing on the UK Health and Safety Executive Press site.A UK oil and gas company has recently been fined £535,000 for a previous crane collapse incident. The crane collapsed on a North Sea oil platform and injured two workers. The company failed to assess risks and maintain the crane in a safe condition and ultimately

Crane collapse on an oil rig

The crane boom fell without warning and hit two workers on the platform on 11th September 2017. Aberdeen Sheriff Court head that the 13-tonne, 45m-long crane boom fell on the deck without warning, with flying parts hitting both workers. One worker suffered a fractured jaw with sustained nerve damage and chest lacerations as well as psychological damage and trauma. The other worker also suffered physiologically, and required counselling not being emotionally able to work offshore for 12 months.

Perilously close to disaster

The crane boom narrowly missed a high-pressure flare line, a fuel gas line, and the main oil line. This could have caused a serious hydrocarbon release. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) says that the company had failed to carry out suitable and sufficient risk assessments and failed to maintain the safe crane braking systems and equipment. HSE principal inspector Dr Stephen Hargreaves says:“This incident could have been avoided by simply carrying out suitable control measures and safe working practices."‍

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Sources

‍£535,000 fine for oil and gas firm after man injured on North Sea platform by HSE, 25th August, 2023.