Now known today as Noble Energy, Samedan Oil Corporation was founded in 1932 by Lloyd Noble. The company’s headquarters are in Houston, Texas. In 1968, this company acquired its first offshore block in the Gulf of Mexico and in the 1970’s Noble Affiliates Inc. was set up to own Samedan Oil Corporation and a drilling company. After eighty seven years of operations it is ranked as the five hundred and eighty third company on Fortune’s 1000 listing with a revenue of $4.986 billion, it hires a total of two thousand three hundred and thirty people.

  • In July, 1994 after testing the BOP it was noted this had a loose bolt, a floor hand employee hired by Noble Drilling, a Samedan sister company, was sent down on a harness attached to a cable to tighten the loose bolt. The cable exhausted and detached, causing the employee to drop into the water, the man was pulled underwater and drowned. After the US Coast Guard recovered the body, the man was transported on shore and pronounced dead.
  • During the setting of a drilling pipe in 1997, a pipe rack collapsed. The employees working on it had been working on the laying of joints of pipe, after having done ten, the workers were turning to get off the pipe when the pipe rack collapsed. One of the workers was able to jump down but the other got his leg caught as the collapsing occurred. The rig was shut down and the crew used pry bars to get his leg freed. Ten minutes later, he was freed and moved to the break room where he had to wait for three and half hours until the Coast Guard arrived and was able to transport him to a hospital.
  • A contractor noticed a small fire on the heater treater, which he promptly put out with a handheld extinguisher. After being shut down for an extended period of time a small oil leak occurred in the fire tube flange. No injuries or fatalities were reported.

Asbestos and the Oil Industry

Asbestos has been a very popular material in the oil industry, its popularity due to its low cost and resistance. But asbestos is, also, an extremely toxic material. Workers on older oil rigs are at risk of being exposed to it, which can lead to health complications including Mesothelioma an aggressive and deadly kind of cancer.

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Oil Rig Accident Lawyers

Oil rig accident attorneys represent ex-employees and current workers that have been involved in accidents at their work location. If you or a loved one has been involved and harmed in an oil rig accident, in which another party is responsible, it is of vital importance that you contact an specialized lawyer in your area, this way you can get on your way to receive the compensation you need and deserve. These accidents can leave workers exposed to long term consequences such as mounting medical bills, physical pain and possible disability.