Fear of casualties permeates the air at Shebah Exploration and Production Company Ltd (SEPCOL) as the fate of ten crewmen on board Trinity Spirit – a floating production and storage platform with capacity for two million barrels of oil which exploded on Wednesday is still unknown.
The company has declared formal investigation into the whereabouts, safety, and security of the ten crew members on board the production vessel.
The vessel, FPSO Trinity Spirit, was operating offshore at Ukpokiti field under Oil Minning Lease (OML) 108, near Escravos in Delta State when it exploded and was engulfed in massive fire.
The ten crew men on board the vessel when the incident happened, are yet to be accounted for even after the fire had burnt out and the water is clear of spill.
Chief Executive Officer, Mr Ikemefuna Okafor, stated in an update on the incident that joint investigation visit with regulators was scheduled for Saturday, February 5.
A source from one of the companies operating in the Escravos area told THE ORACLE TODAY that the vessel had been lying dormant for years and there was hardly any serious activity in it.
The investigation, according to Mr Okafor, would primarily focus on the cause of the incident and account for the missing crew members who were on the vessel before it was engulfed in fire.
“We have been working with the relevant authorities and stakeholders to contain the situation and an investigation has been launched to establish the cause of the explosion,” Mr Okafor stated.
Even though he stated that no casualty has been reported, he did not account for the missing crew men.
“We can confirm that the fire burnt out completely as of Thursday afternoon, 3rd Feb. 2022 and this has enabled closer inspection of the vessel. With this development, a Joint Investigation Visit (JIV) has been scheduled for Saturday, 5th February 2022 with the relevant authorities, stakeholders, and expert organizations.
“Currently, there are still no reported fatalities, and we continue prioritizing investigations with respect to establishing the whereabouts, safety, and security of the ten crew members who were on board the vessel prior to the incident,” he said.