Fatalities – pipe fell from skids

  • Safety Flash
  • Published on 6 December 2016
  • Generated on 11 December 2024
  • IMCA SF 33/16
  • 1 minute read

The International Association of Oil & Gas Producers (IOGP) has published the following safety alert regarding an incident in which two persons were killed when they were crushed under a pipe that fell approximately 60cm from wooden support skids.

Position of pipe before incident

Position of pipe before falling from the two supports pictured (of eight total)

Diagram of pipe temperatures

A section of 36-inch gas export line they were working under or near fell off the approximately 60cm high temporary wooden supports (skid stacks) and crushed them. The two employees, a grinder and a welder, were completing a construction weld repair at the north-eastern-most weld joint of an approximately 120m curved section of the export pipeline.

The IOGP report notes the following:

  • The work permit system in place was rigorously applied to the known risks, but there was a lack of awareness of:
    • The hazard presented by temporarily suspended pipes, which constituted a dynamic load/dropped object hazard
    • The hazard of thermal expansion, differential heating, and residual pre-stress forces contributing to the lateral movement of curved pipe segments.

The full report can be found at safetyzone.iogp.org/SafetyAlerts/alerts/Detail.asp?alert_id=277.

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