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| Proforma Safety, LLC Proforma PSI…when performance counts. Short Cut Results in Fatality A roustabout was relocating an oil sight glass from the third porthole from the bottom of the gear box cover to the second porthole from the bottom, which required a quantity of oil to be drained from the gear case. Scaffolding was built and approved by the barge engineer before the work started. To expedite the flow of oil from the gearbox, the roustabout connected an air hose from the rig air system to the porthole at the top of the gear box. The air was turned on, the gear box pressured up. . .and the cover blew off. Thirty nine of the 40 bolts that held the cover in place were sheared off. While the exact cause of death has yet to be determined, the roustabout died of multiple head injuries incurred either when he was struck by one of the bolts or hit his head against a bolt on a scaffold clamp. The cause of the accident has been attributed to the shortcut taken by the roustabout in using air to expedite oil removal. In his attempt to speed up the operation, he lost his life. Recommendations included requiring supervisors to be more involved in job planning, that risk analysis be completed, and worksite inspections be performed.
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