A Floating Production, Storage and Offloading (FPSO) Vessel, identified as Trinity Spirit FPSO, has exploded, causing raging fire and fear at Escravos in Warri South-West Local Government Area of Delta State.
A source who spoke with The New Diplomat disclosed that crew members onboard the vessel who are feared dead, were still missing as of the time of this reporting. He noted that the explosion occurred in the afternoon of Wednesday, February 2, 2022.
Breaking! [Video] Crew Members Missing As FPSO Explosion Rattles Escravos-Warri pic.twitter.com/FFG80vC8sv
— New Diplomat (@NewDiplomat1) February 3, 2022
The vessel is said to produce crude oil and it was situated around Meren, a North Field Oil Facility belonging to a multi-national oil and gas company.
The explosion, has allegedly caused serious fear among workers manning oil facilities close-by as they were still watching the raging fire helplessly as at 9:50 am when this report was filed.
The Chief Executive Officer, Shebah Exploration and Production Company Ltd (in Receivership), Ikemefuna Okafor who confirmed the development, asserted that the FPSO Trinity Spirit located at the Ukpokit’ Teminal, exploded during the early hours of Wednesday.
Okafor affirmed that there were no reported fatalities when the incident occured, adding that ten crew men were on board the vessel prior to the incident.
In a statement he said: “The Management of Shebah Exploration & Production Company Ltd (SEPCOL} in RECEIVERSHIP hereby announce the unfortunate incident of a fire that engulfed our offshore facility, the FPSO Trinity Spirit located at the Ukpokit’ Teminal, following an explosion during the early hours of Wednesday, 2 of February 2022.
“The cause of the explosion is currently being investigated and we are working with necessary parties to contain the situation.
“At this time, there are no reported fatalities, but we can confirm that there were ten crew men on board the vessel prior to the incident and we are prioritising investigations with respect to their safety and security.
“We appreciate the assistance provided us by the Clean Nigeria Associates, the Chevron team operating in the nearby Escravos facility and our community stakeholders as well as fishermen, who have been of tremendous assistance since the incident happened.
“We have duly notified all relevant authorities and we appeal to the members of the public to stay away from the area while our Crisis Management Team continue to monitor the situation and update all stakeholders with new information as the investigation evolves.”
