UK Piper Alpha 30th Anniversary Observed

At 7pm July 6 the city of Aberdeen, oil and gas industry and its workers will pause to remember the 167 men killed 30 years ago on the Piper Alpha platform, the world's worst offshore disaster.

Occidental Petroleum's Piper Alpha oil platform suffered a number of explosion and gas leak ignitions that night; in the resulting fire, 165 of the 226 workers were killed, as were two rescue vessel crewmen. The loss of the platform's control room and fire-fighting systems and failure to shut off risers and nearby gas and oil pipeline infrastructure were major contributors to the death toll.  

A service is to be held 7pm at the Piper Alpha Memorial in the city's Hazlehead Park and a minute's silence observed.

Industry group Oil & Gas UK said that offshore workers would be able to pay their respects as the service is being streamed live on the UK Oil and Gas Chaplaincy Facebook page.

Trade union RMT's offshore section said that employers, government, and regulators must do more for the safety of offshore workers. 

An early day motion in parliament has noted that Lord Cullen's report into the disaster made 106 recommendations to repair and improve the safety culture in the UK offshore industry – all accepted by the government in 1990 – and welcomed the progress made since, but says better enforcement of regulations governing safety committees and workforce safety representatives on installations is essential.