OFFSHORE workers on a North Sea installation may have been exposed to asbestos – despite claims they were told they were safe from the dangerous substance.
Staff on Canadian Natural Resources International’s (CNRI) Ninian Central platform were demolishing an old accommodation block and are understood to have been reassured they would not need protective face masks because the unit did not contain asbestos.
However, it emerged the harmful fibres could have been used in the block’s construction and the work, which was carried out by 15 men, was halted.
It is thought so much asbestos was found on Friday, September 23, that workers filled six skips, which were to be transported onshore. But the shipment was rejected and was returned to the platform 240 miles north-east of Aberdeen.
Last night, union leader Jake Molloy, of the RMT in Aberdeen, said CNRI should have suspected asbestos would be present in the block because the platform was built in the 1970s.
He accused the operator of putting workers’ health at risk.
Mr Molloy said: “When Ninian Central was built, asbestos was the only material which could resist heat and fire, so of course it is going to be there.
“Asbestos in a dry, dusty environment is lethal, but its effects set in as you get older. My concern is for the guys involved because they will not know what impact, if any, this will have had on them for years to come.”
Inhaling asbestos can lead to a number of diseases, including lung cancer and mesothelioma.
It is not the first time CNRI has been criticised for its approach to safety on Ninian Central, which is manned by 180 people.
Last year, the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) had to issue four warnings to the company and said it was not ensuring the safety of workers on the installation. Failings included a gas leak, while pipes and other steelwork were also found to be in poor condition.
Last night, a spokeswoman for CNRI said an asbestos specialist had been sent to the platform to assess if the accommodation block contained the hazardous fibres.
She said: “CNRI is investigating the potential disturbance of asbestos-containing material during removal of redundant external office space on the Ninian Central platform. All removal work was immediately halted and suspect material quarantined.
“The health and safety of our offshore workforce is our top priority. All personnel on board the platform have been advised of the situation.
“CNRI mobilised an independent specialist to carry out sampling and analysis to determine whether the materials involved contain asbestos.”
She added: “The HSE has been advised of CNRI’s ongoing response.”