Worker dies on Gulf gas platform

A worker assisting in abandonment operations died Monday morning at a non-producing natural gas platform owned by Hilcorp Energy Co. in the Gulf of Mexico, U.S. officials said.

By Gregory Hale; Source: ISS Source April 26, 2011

A worker assisting in abandonment operations died Monday morning at a non-producing natural gas platform owned by Hilcorp Energy Co. in the Gulf of Mexico, U.S. officials said.

The Alliance Oilfield Services worker fell through a deck opening, said the U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement.

First responders went to the aid of the victim, whose names was not immediately available, on the platform. They then airlifted him to the hospital where he died.

The natural gas platform, located about 130 miles off the shore of Louisiana, had not been in production since 2008. Workers were pursuing operations to plug and abandon its wells, the bureau said.

Bureau inspectors tried to fly to the platform the next day, but heavy fog delayed the flight. They will make another flight as soon as the weather lifted.

Representatives for Hilcorp Energy and Alliance Oilfield Services were not available for immediate comment.