Dear junta
This mail is for you as well as for all the other junta around. So pass it on to others as well who might not be listed.
I am writing to you guys after a long time as I was on the rig for the last 5 weeks or more since the time I came back from India.
For those of you who are planning a career with Schlumberger Sedco-forex, let me tell you guys some things. You get lot of money and comforts and job satisfaction and recognition and etc. etc. . but you have to play with your life many times. I tell you guys of something that could have ruined my whole life but I was lucky. Others are not so lucky, and you might be one of them.
Twice before I was almost on the verge of loosing my fingers ( I have already narrated the incident to some of you down there), but it was a near miss. This time it was no miss. I DID have an accident but miracuously nothing was badly damaged.
There is a guge piese of equipment called the BOP (blow out preventor) It is one monster of an equipment - 6 meters or so high, weighing 60 tonnes and with many arms and one base and a big hole on the head. This we put on the well-head to control if it tries to kick us with oil or gas. Now I was working on top of this equipment and must have gone up and down this thing about 20 time in the night. I was working midnight to midday (my usual shift , but that day we were doing a very important operation. So I hadnt taken any coffee or breakfast break and was working myself off.
At around 8:30 in the morning, someone removed the supporting chains connected to the crane as the BOP was now firmly bolted and clamped to the well-head.But he forgot to tell me. I was using these chains constantly to go up and down as they were very sturdy and always in tension. This time, I did the same. I removed the hook of my safety belt from the bolts of the BOP top and swung myself on the chain to get down one level - but the huge thing came crashing at me. Under the force of impact of the heavy chain and also loosing my balance due to the swinging, I was flying in the air. I landed 5 1/2 or 6 meters below ( higher than the top of a two storeyed building) on a solid iron railing with a very small area of my back taking the full impact of the fall. After that, as I was in a see-saw like position on the railing with my face up and back down, I toppled over to the side towards the open sea. Tis time , my safety belt got entangled with the iron grating below, and I was left suspended in the mid air. There were around 20 people working there and all shrieked- because if not dead or paralysed for life , they were sure that I would be spending the next couple of months in Hospital. I was pulled out by these guys and everybody was asking was I o.k. and touching me all over to feel for broken bones. I had lost one safety boot, one work glove, my safety glasses (new) and also my helmet in the sea. Hence I was feeling rather annoyed. I was feeling much of a pain anywhere except some in the back. I went ( on my own feet) to have breakfast and returned to work in 1/2 an hour after taking new Personal Protective equipment and filing the Accident report. People said I must have done some good deeds in my life, but I feel that since I don't have any good deeds to my credit, it must be your good wishes that saved me that day. Nobody but the very very lucky people escape from that kind of a fall. But I attribute it to your best wishes and the good luck that you guys wished me when I left for this job.
As for now , I am in the office at this moment, celebrating the new year with my company people in the Schlumberger style - all different nationalities but one objective - enjoy to the fullest, for you might not get another chance. Tommorrow I go back to the rig for 1 1/2 weeks, come back on 15-1-97, go Bali on a pleasure trip for a couple of days on 24-1-97 and from there to Singaspore for 1 month and then to INDIA on 23-2-97 for 3 weeks and then to some other country, some other rig, some other people , some other friends.
Bye for now, and remember - think before you leap( remember - Pandey ? )
Rahul