Another Oil Platform Explodes in Gulf of Mexico

NEW ORLEANS, Lousiana, September 2, 2010 (ENS) - An explosion ripped through an offshore oil platform in the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of central Louisiana at about 9:19 this morning CDT, throwing 13 crewmembers into the water.

U.S. Coast Guard spokesman Petty Officer Prentice Danner says all have been rescued alive by a Coast Guard vessel. All 13 people were wearing immersion suits.

The 13 crewmembers were picked up by the OSV Crystal Clear and taken to another platform. Coast Guard helicopters are transporting the rescued to Terrebonne General Hospital.

Map indicates the approximate location of the Mariner oil rig on Vermillion Block 380.

The explosion was first reported by the pilot of a commercial helicopter who called the Coast Guard at about 10 am local time. The rig is reported to still be burning, and the Coast Guard is responding with nine helicopters, an aircraft and four boats.

The site of this latest explosion is about 90 miles south of Vermilion Bay on Louisiana's central coast, to the west of the BP/Deepwater Horizon explosion in April that killed 11 crewmembers and started a three-month long oil spill.

The rig, on Vermillion Block 380, is owned by Mariner Energy of Houston, Texas.

Mariner issued a statement confirming that a fire has occurred at a production platform located on Vermilion Block 380, saying the rig is located approximately 100 miles from the Louisiana coast.

"All 13 members of the crew have been evacuated and safely accounted for. No injuries have been reported. In an initial flyover, no hydrocarbon spill was reported," the company said in a statement.

"Mariner has notified and is working with regulatory authorities in response to this incident. The cause is not known, and an investigation will be undertaken," the company said.

During the last week of August 2010, production from this facility averaged approximately 9.2 million cubic feet of natural gas per day and 1,400 barrels of oil and condensate, the company stated.

Mariner is among the largest independent oil and gas companies operating in the Gulf of Mexico with nearly 350 offshore leases, 110 of them in production.

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