NEWFOUNDLAND COMPANY BUILDS EAST COAST EMERGENCY RESPONSE CAPABILITY

Flagship Magazine (Petro-Canada)

How do you think you’d respond to an emergency? Would you panic and run for cover, or would you remain calm and try to think clearly to ensure to ensure everything is handled in a organized manor – making the best of a bad situation.

 

Today’s offshore oil and gas operations place a high priority on safety and prevention by putting in place equipment and procedures to minimize the likelihood of an emergency. However, while working towards having the ‘best’ safety record, responsible operators must also prepare for ‘the worst’ by building a strong emergency response (ER) capability. The objective is to ensure that all personnel respond safely, effectively and according to procedure in any emergency situation.

 

Newfoundland company Seacom has carved a niche for itself in preparing companies to respond to emergencies. Seacom is working with large organizations such as Terra Nova, Hibernia and Husky Oil, anticipating worst case scenarios and training and exercising personnel so they are prepared to respond appropriately; preventing injuries to personnel minimizing damage to equipment or the environment.

 

Real offshore emergencies require a quick response, explains Seacom President Paul Clay. “At Seacom we specialize in emergency response preparedness primarily for marine and offshore oil gas operations. We prepare emergency response procedures, develop software, conduct training exercises in accordance with the organization’s emergency response plan and evaluate them in their performance on an ongoing basis.”

 

Lately, Seacom has been preparing a series of exercises for Terra Nova related to their ongoing winter activities, mainly drilling operations and the excavation of the glory holes. “We develop a mock crisis involving perhaps the Queen of the Netherlands, Cougar Helicopters or the Glomar Grand Banks,” explains Clay. “Terra Nova’s onshore emergency response team then runs through their procedures as if it were an actual emergency and we follow with an evaluation of their performance, determining how I they handled the situation.”

 

Over the past few months, Seacom has been working with the 24-member Terra Nova Onshore Emergency Response Team helping them build a core set of skills. Clay says these exercises appear very real and can be stressful for participants. “It is important that they feel comfortable in responding to incidents, so that they can work confidently and within a respon­sible time limit in a real situation:’ he adds.

 

According to Clay, emergency response is not as simple as people would think. “It works within a complex structure involving many players - from regulatory authorities, onshore and offshore person­nel, hospitals, support vessels, oil and gas operators, alliance member companies and the Canadian Coast Guard. And they all have to be coordinated from a central location.”

 

If an emergency occurs within Terra Nova it will be coordinated from an Incident Command Center (ICC) where trained personnel focus on all issues surrounding the emergency. “For example, this team handles regulatory issues, they look after logistics such as deploying helicopters and supply vessels. In addi­tion, they advise on environment, health and safety issues and are responsible for the provision of technical support:’ explains Clay. “If a specialized medical team is required offshore, the ICC would also make those arrangements. And there is a Public Affairs Advisor to deal with the media and a Human Resources Advisor to coordinate family related matters.”

 

Clay says it is important that family members have access to an accurate, up-to-date source of infor­mation during an emergency situation offshore. In addition, communicating with the media to help keep the community informed is an important component of any emergency response system. To that end Terra Nova has established Media and Family telephone response centres with trained personnel dedicated keeping family and the public informed about the emergency situation the development faces.

 

With clients all over the world, Seacom has experience working with drilling and production operators, marine terminals, pipeline operators, refineries, shorebases, and shipping companies. In addition, they are establishing themselves as experts in Canada’s east coast oil and gas industry through their extensive work with Hibernia, Husky Oil, Jeanne d’Arc Basin Operations and now Terra Nova.

 

When you look at the relationship that Seacom has developed with offshore organizations like Terra Nova and Hibernia, it is hard to determine who is benefiting the most. Clay believes it is a two-way “We have been able to build up the emergency response expertise within these projects while bringing our own experiences, through the development of procedures that can be applied almost anywhere in the world. This definitely improves our marketability. It’s a win/win for everyone”.