Last night's Presidential message brought home the extreme danger and devastation possible when man drills into the Earth to tap its vast store of natural resources. Eleven BP workers lost their lives in the horrific Deepwater Horizon drill rig explosion in the Gulf of Mexico. Recent news reports make it clear that those lives were put at risk by faulty and negligent safety practices at BP and abysmal oversight by federal regulators. While repercussions from the Gulf Coast tragedy will eventually reverberate here in Philadelphia, distance makes the suffering experienced on those distant shores feel remote. However, the threat of disaster exists closer to home than many Philadelphians would expect.
Tragedy in Philadelphia's own backyard was narrowly averted last week when a blowout occured at a natural gas drilling site in rural western Pennsylvania. The construction accident 100 miles from Pittsburgh had the potential to create a massive explosion. While the drill site did not catch fire, the construction accident sent 35,000 of gallons of explosive natural gas and toxic drilling fluid shooting 75 feet into the air. It took EOG, a Huston-based drilling company, nearly 16 hours to repair the blowout and halt the flow.
A similar construction accident at a West Virginia natural gas drill site resulted in a fireball that injured seven workers last week; and an natural gas blowout at a Texas site killed one worker and hospitalized two workers with serious burns.
The recent natural gas blowout is not the first time EOG operations have resulted in Pennsylvania construction accidents. Last September two spills on EOG sites were caused by faulty piping connections, and a third spill was attributed to a ruptured hose.
Philadelphia construction companies are responsible for their workers' safety and for maintaining construction equipment in good repair. If you are involved in a construction accident, a Philadelphia personal injury attorney can investigate and make certain that your rights are protected.
