Major Gas Leak Left Undetected For 84 Minutes On Platform

A major gas leak went unnoticed on a North Sea platform for 84 minutes after a detection system failed, according to a safety report.

It happened on Petrofac's Kittiwake installation on March 20.

It was noticed by a worker who smelt gas, and then raised the alarm.

The Health and Safety Executive has issued Petrofac with an improvement notice, which must to followed by September.

The leak was caused by a fractured stainless steel pipe.

A spokesman for Petrofac said: "Safety is our number one priority and we take any occurrence of this kind extremely seriously.

“We fully accept the HSE’s recommendations and are working with them to further develop and strengthen our small bore pipework management and fire and gas detection systems.”