An offshore natural-gas rig sank off Venezuela on Thursday, and 95 workers were rescued safely, the government said.
All of the workers on the Aban Pearl — a rig owned by Aban Singapore, a wholly owned subsidiary of Aban Offshore, India’s largest oil rig company — off eastern Sucre state were safely evacuated, and the sinking poses no threat to the environment, Venezuelan oil minister, Mr Rafael Ramirez, told state television.
The navy rescued the workers using a frigate and boats after the gas platform disappeared into the Carib-bean Sea at 2.20 am (6.50 GMT), Mr Ramirez said.
“The company is assisting in assessment and in determination of the causes of the incident,” Aban said in a statement on its website.
Mr Ramirez said officials are investigating, but there was a problem with the flotation systems of the semi-submergible platform that led to a massive water leak in one area.
He said alarms went off three hours before the sinking, giving the crew time to evacuate. Three workers including the captain stayed behind until it was clear that the rig was at risk of collapsing, and then abandoned the rig, he said.
Unlike the disastrous oil spill caused by a rig explosion off the coast of Loui-siana on April 20, the sinking of the rig posed no app-arent threat to the environment, officials said. — AP