Piper Alpha Oil Rig – Exxon Valdez – Prestige Oil Spill – are some of the world’s most expensive maritime catastrophes
Piper Alpha Oil Rig - On
July 6, 1988 Piper Alpha Oil Rig platform was engulfed in flames and
eventually collapsed that lost the lives of 167 workers and resulting in 3.4
billion dollar in damages. The cause of accident was lack of communication at a
shift change that leads to overlooked the absence of safety valve that were
essential in preventing the build-up of liquid gas, the gas leaked and ignited.
Exxon Valdez - On March 24, 1989 Exxon Valdez hit Bligh Reef in Prince William Sound; its
side split open and releasing 11 million gallons of crude oil. Cleanup cost 2.5
billion dollar.
Prestige Oil Spill - On November 13, 2002, during a storm off Galicia, Spain, one of the
twelve tanks of the Prestige oil tanker burst while it is carrying 77,000 tons
of heavy fuel oil. The tanker split into half releasing twenty million gallons
of oil into the sea. The cleanup cost 12 billion dollar.