Petrobras blast casualties
February 11, 2015
At least three workers were killed and others injured in an explosion Wednesday at an offshore oil and natural gas platform in Brazil operated by state-run energy company Petroleo Brasileiro (Petrobras), according to the Unified Oil Workers Federation.
In a statement on its website, the union said the blast was caused by a gas leak in the engine room of the vessel.
While confirming the explosion, the government and Petrobras itself did not immediately specify the number of casualties.
Trade union official Paulo Rony said a number of people were missing in the blast, but the fire that followed it was under control.
Untimely accident
The oil rig in question, the Cidade des Sao Mateus, was operating in the Camarupim field northeast of Vitoria, the capital of Brazil's Espirito Santo state. It was producing about 2,000 barrels of oil a day as recently as February 2014.
Wednesday's accident comes amid a wider crisis for Petrobras, which faces a probe by federal investigators into an alleged massive kickback scheme operated by former executives of the company.
The latter are suspected of having received vast sums in bribes from construction and engineering firms in exchange for giving those companies inflated contracts.
hg/nz (Reuters, AP, dpa)