Errors Led to Leak on Oil Platform

A November leak of a potentially deadly gas and a small amount of crude oil at Platform Gail off the Ventura County coast occurred after operators failed to follow federal rules, investigators reported Friday.

The incident led to the evacuation of 39 workers after the release of flammable natural gas and toxic hydrogen sulfide tripped safety alarms. No one was injured, and no birds or marine life was harmed, reported the federal Minerals Management Service.

Venoco, a Carpinteria-based platform operator, and its contractor, Kenai Drilling Ltd., were cited for two “incidents of noncompliance” for failing to keep control of the wellhead and for allowing about three gallons of oil to spill into the ocean.

The operating errors were serious enough that the Minerals Management Service sent a “safety alert” to all operators of offshore platforms in U.S. waters, warning against similar mistakes, said agency spokesman John Romero.

The report found that contractors working for Venoco allowed oil and gas to spray onto the platform by removing a “lockdown pin” from a wellhead, which allowed the gases and fluids to escape through the 1 1/2-inch diameter opening. Removal of the pin circumvented the well’s safety system to prevent blowouts.

This “inherently unsafe” maneuver was done by a crew attempting to realign an oil pipeline inside the well casing, the report stated. Operators also erred by stopping the pumping of water into the wellhead, which had acted as a check on the flow of oil and gas to the wellhead.

Federal officials have not yet decided whether to take civil or criminal actions against Venoco or its contractor, Romero said.