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Permalink Reply by Erik Golub on October 2, 2009 at 11:13pm

I have read the Byford Doplphin accident description. Without trying to sound morbid, I guess the only comforting fact is that the divers died instantly.

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Permalink Reply by Dive Diva on October 3, 2009 at 11:38am

On the fifth of November 1983 five men were killed and one man seriously injured on the Byford Dolphin while diving in the Norwegian Sector; they were:

Bjørn Giæver Bergesen
Truls Hellevik
Roy Lucas
Edwin Arthur Coward
William Brown Crammond
Martin Andrew Saunders

1983 was another lean year for the oil industry, offshore companies were cutting corners and pinching pennies, just as they are today. And like today the companies were quick to point out human error as the cause of any incident, rather than the contractor or manufacturer being held accountable for liability issues. It wasn't just a matter of human error or equipment malfunction that led to the Byron Dolphin accident. Billy Crammond made a video and sent it home to his family prior to his death. Check it out at www.pioneerdivers.org and look for the safety issues in that video.

Died instantly? How fast is instantly? Seconds vs minutes? too quickly to comprehend something is terribly wrong or too quick to feel pain?

Rather than take comfort in the belief that they died instantly, I feel outrage at the way that their families and fellow divers were treated then and now. Today 25+ years after the fact, the Norwegian divers (and their families) that opened the North Sea fields are fighting for compensation for their injuries and losses. Though they are taking their case through the proper legal channels, they and their attorneys are being harrassed and presecuted by their own government and the oil companies that profitted by their labors and losses.

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Permalink Reply by Erik Golub on October 3, 2009 at 12:09pm

Christ the diver was shot out through the hatch due to the rapid decompression from 9 atm to 1 atm in less than a second. I already said I don't want to sound morbid so give me a break.

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Permalink Reply by Dive Diva on October 3, 2009 at 1:00pm

Erik, my post wasn't to chastise you. But to remind all to look at the bigger picture. We tend to minimize and thus forget such tragedies for a variety of reasons; rather than ask hard questions, like how something like this could have happened?

You say that you read about the incident and I presume that since you are here that you are a diver or tender. So with the knowledge you acquired in school, ask yourself this?

WHY would a tender (the report states the tenders were divers) open a chamber clamp that is securing a hatch door at 9 atm?

Better yet HOW could a tender open a chamber clamp that was under 9 atm pressure?

Was it really human error as reported or was it mechanical failure? or something else entirely? We will never know.

If you look at the Byford Dolphin video that was taken before the incident occurred, you will see blatant safety violations, if these had been addressed and corrected prior to the incident would it have made a difference?

My concern is for your safety, too much of what happens to the divers is preventable. I wish you a long and prosperous career as a diver. Dive Safe Erik.

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Permalink Reply by Dive Diva on October 3, 2009 at 5:29pm

Thanks Dale.

Just one further note I'd like to add, the following article is about Billy Crammond's widow.

Billy was the diver referred to as Diver 4 (the one that exploded). Billy Crammond was blamed for the Byford Dolphin accident and his widow today is still fighting the Norwegian government to clear his name. ~ Diva

Dunfermlinepress

By Graham Gibson

Published: 25 September 2008

A WEST FIFE woman has vowed to fight on in her battle to clear her late husband’s name after losing a court decision against the Norwegian government.

Ruth Crammond, of Barns Park, Dalgety Bay, wants the Norwegian government to take responsibility for an accident that killed her husband and four other North Sea divers 25 years ago.

Mrs Crammond said she “didn’t care how long it takes” to get justice for her husband, Bill – who was blamed for an explosion on the Byford Dolphin Oil rig in the North Sea – after an Oslo court ruled against finding the government legally responsible for damages.

“I am angry and sad at the decision but I am not going to give up,” Mrs Crammond told the Press. “All I am looking for is an apology and the truth to come out and clear Bill.

“Fighting on is not only up to me. There are seven British families who are helping each other to get through this. We want the Norwegian government to stand up and take responsibility for what happened.”

Mrs Crammond is among the relatives of seven British divers, who died between the 1960s and 1980s, who are suing the Norwegian government, as owner of the oilfields, for their loved ones’ deaths.

She was told that Bill, who was working for a diving company called Comex, caused an explosion on 5th November 1983 by detaching a diving bell from the decompression chamber before it was safe to do so, killing himself and four other divers.

However, the North Sea Divers Alliance (NSDA), a group of pioneer divers working for the Norwegian oil industry, obtained reports that the real cause was faulty equipment.

Mrs Crammond was quick to praise the work of the NSDA.

“Without the help of the NSDA we would not be where we are now,” she said. “If they hadn’t found me six months ago I would not even have known this was happening and what the truth actually was.”

Mrs Crammond admitted the 25-year ordeal had taken a great toll on her and her children, Linda (37) and Billy (33).

“Our lives could have been very different,” she said. “I hid the story about what happened from my children for 25 years but at least we can talk about the situation now.

“Sometimes I wish it had never all started again but my children are ready to carry on the fight even after I’m gone if that is how long it takes.”

Mrs Crammond has been overwhelmed by the support of the Norwegian people, one of whom set up an online petition to garner support for the ex-divers and their families.

“The electronic petition is just another example of the great support we have had from the Norwegian people,” she said. “They are right behind us and believe we are justified in our case. The more we can get to sign the petition the better.

“I am confident we can get a result and in the abilities of Tom Wingen who has been fantastic.”

Mr Wingen, a spokesman for the NSDA, has been instrumental in bringing the law suit against the Norwegian government and is keen to stress they will fight on.

“The court ruling was very frustrating but it is by no means a knock out punch,” he said. “Work began again on the day of the ruling.

“The indication is that the judge would have liked to rule in favour of the divers and families, but then would have been required to make a new legal precedent which could affect future rulings on similar pending cases in the court.

“The long and short of it all is that the verdict, in the way it is written, is designed for us to succeed when bringing the case to a higher court.”

Both Mr Wingen and Mrs Crammond were keen to encourage everyone to sign the digital petition and pass it on to anyone else they know who would be willing.

Mr Wingen said, “The Norwegian government needs to know that this case is in the eye of the world, not just something they can sweep under the carpet in Norway.”

The online petition can be accessed at www.pioneerdivers.org

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Permalink Reply by Erik Golub on October 3, 2009 at 11:30pm

No problems dive diva. BTW I am neither a diver nor a tender, which means you're more qualified to give any kind of comments related to the topic. I am not talking about legal implementations, diving regulations or sth else. I just wanted to say that however horrible it must have been over instantly.

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