Upstream Operations: Fatalities Related to Confined Vapors and Gases

Susan Monroe, M.S., CIH US DOL/OSHA

Upstream, Midstream, Downstream

Upstream: exploration, testing, rigging up, digging, drilling, extraction, rigging down

Midstream: transportation to downstream factilities (basically)

Downstream: petroleum product distribution, retail outlets and natural gas distribution companies. The downstream industry touches consumers through thousands of products such as gasoline or petrol, diesel, jet fuel, heating oil, asphalt, lubricants, synthetic rubber, plastics, fertilizers, antifreeze, pesticides, pharmaceuticals, natural gas, and propane

Confined Space

Is large enough for an employee to enter fully and perform assigned work;

Is not designed for continuous occupancy by the employee; and

Has a limited or restricted means of entry or exit. These spaces may include underground vaults,

tanks, storage bins, pits and diked areas, vessels, silos and other similar areas.

PresenterPresentation NotesBut in Upstream Oil and Gas, you have confined vapors and gases, often under pressure, where entry is not made, but a definite hazard exists.

Permit Required Confined Space

A confined space which has one or more of these characteristics: Contains or has the potential to contain a hazardous

atmosphere; Contains a material with the potential to engulf

someone who enters the space; Has an internal configuration that might cause an

entrant to be trapped or asphyxiated by inwardly converging walls or by a floor that slopes downward and tapers to a smaller cross section; and/or

Contains any other recognized serious safety or health hazards.

Upstream Fatalities in the Past Four Years

05

1015202530354045

2008 2009 2010 2011 2012

# Upstream Fatalities

# Upstream Fatalities

Upstream Fatalities: Fatality Event

0 20 40 60 80

Blowout/Explosion/Overpres

"Heart Attack"/Heat/No

Electrocution

Fall (unrelated to an

Struck-By (unrelated to an

Inhalation of toxic or Asphyxia

Other

# Fatalities

# Fatalities

Why focus on confined gases /vapors when most fatalities are struck-by or falls?

Fall hazards are usually obvious Struck-by and Fall fatalities are often indirectly caused

by release of built-up gas or vapor pressure, e.g., a blowout causes the rig to collapse

Built up gas and vapors are an underlying cause in many oil and gas fatalities

This type of gas and vapor fatality represents a less recognized hazard scenario. It does not fit a confined space definition due to lack of entry and it is not covered by the PSM standard, which addresses overpressurization

The physical hazard of a gas/vapor under pressure often underlies these fatalities

Ages of Heart Attack/Heat/ No Witness Victims

Age 20-30

age 31-40

age 40-50

Above 50

0 1 2 3 4

# "Heart Attack"/Heat/No Witness Victims

# "HeartAttack"/Heat/UnknownVictims

Where Heart Attack/Heat/No Witness Victims were Found

beneath the stairs leading to the rig floor lower deck in front of drill rig beside manhole where the filling pipes are

located under the substructure of the drilling floor near the oil well under the tire of the defoaming machine at drilling rig #3 by storage tank #1

Was it a Heart Attack?

Burden on OSHA: How can you prove it was not? Many times no witness, just a body

Gas is gone from the air, cannot sample By-products of the fatal gases also occur naturally

in the human body Difficulty of getting fresh post-mortem samples:

custody of corpse, OSHA not a forensic agency, autopsies conducted by local, non-federal agencies, subject to local budgets and politics

Even in cases of H2S overexposure, it may be ruled natural causes because the heart failed

Case study: typical fall fatality where gas may have been released

January 2011 Oklahoma: employee #1 (28 years old) was observed running to the stairway on the rigemployee #2 lost sight of him as he approached the stairway. Employee #1 was found later that day, lying beneath the stairway leading up to the rigno one witnessed the accidentthe victim may have slipped going up the stairway

Case Study: Typical Struck-By Fatality Caused by Sudden Gas Release

January 2011 Colorado: The motorman of an oil drilling rig was struck by an unexpected release of pressurized drilling mud when a threaded nipple connection on the pipe stand came loose. The motorman was then burned when the mud struck a nearby halogen light fixture on the rig which ignited

Case Study: Typical Struck-by Fatality Caused by Over Pressurization of Gas

November 2010 Oklahoma: Six workers arrived at Gas well #3 to clean it. The crew was performing normal procedures for servicing a gas well. They connected a blowout preventer valve first. Later during the cleaning, a tubing became stuck in the well. They attempted to work it free, but the tubing broke and was ejected from the well. They ran from the well. The blown tubing struck Employee #1 in the back of his head, killing him instantly.

Other OSHA Standards that Relate to Confined Vapors and Gases (besides the confined space standard)

1910.134 1910.1000 1910.253 1910.120 1910.132

Why is 1910.1000 Hardly Ever Cited in these Situations?

Confined spaces change rapidly After gas is released and blowout occurs,

or explosion, dispersion occurs Non-Newtonian fluid issue ---the stirring/

sheering of the fluid stops due to the traumatic event, so gas stops being released

Take Home Message to Avoid These Hazards:

Consider Vapor and Gas buildup Look for electrical sources near gases and vapors Whatever is containing the gas may leak or burst Most gases have poor warning properties Gas concentrations can change quickly, even in open air Gas is used everyday, everywhere, and this lessens

employee hazard perception Upstream operations employees tend to underestimate

hazards Most oil and gas workers have 12 hour shifts; fatigue adds

to lack of understanding unseen hazards

Upstream Operations: Fatalities Related to Confined Vapors and GasesUpstream, Midstream, DownstreamConfined SpacePermit Required Confined SpaceUpstream Fatalities in the Past Four YearsUpstream Fatalities: Fatality EventWhy focus on confined gases /vapors when most fatalities are struck-by or falls?Ages of Heart Attack/Heat/ No Witness VictimsWhere Heart Attack/Heat/No Witness Victims were FoundWas it a Heart Attack?Case study: typical fall fatality where gas may have been released Case Study: Typical Struck-By Fatality Caused by Sudden Gas ReleaseCase Study: Typical Struck-by Fatality Caused by Over Pressurization of GasOther OSHA Standards that Relate to Confined Vapors and Gases (besides the confined space standard)Why is 1910.1000 Hardly Ever Cited in these Situations? Take Home Message to Avoid These Hazards: