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Oil rigs' safety net questioned as governments rely onprivate inspectionsBy David S. HilzenrathWashington Post Staff Writer Sunday, August 15, 2010

To ensure that oil rigs, tankers and other commercialships are in safe operating condition, governmentsaround the world, including the U.S. government,often rely on inspections by private firms that are hiredand paid by the vessels' owners.

But how much confidence should the world have inthe maritime watchdogs?

The Deepwater Horizon catastrophe, which claimed11 lives and fouled the Gulf of Mexico, has revealedthat the mobile oil rig leased by BP had a host ofmaintenance problems.

Case in point: In April, the company that owned therig gave parts of two cranes its worst rating, indicatingthat they did not work or should be removed fromservice.

That assessment was for the company's internal use.

Less than two months earlier, one of the maininspection firms upon which governments dependdeclared that the same cranes were in satisfactorycondition.

Although there is no reason to think the cranes hadanything to do with the explosion that destroyed therig on April 20, records of the Deepwater Horizon'smaintenance and inspection history -- including thecrane assessments -- open a window on possibleweaknesses in the little-known industry that overseesthe world's commercial fleets.

The business traces its roots to the 1700s, wheninsurers in London created a system to assess the shipsthey might insure.

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Today, owners of vessels flagged in the United States generally have a choice. To fulfillfederal requirements, they can let the Coast Guard conduct primary inspections, or theycan enlist one of several private firms authorized to do the work in place of the CoastGuard.

When it comes to vessels flagged by othernations -- such as the Deepwater Horizon,which is registered in the Marshall Islands -- the Coast Guard depends largely on theoversight of foreign governments, whichmight essentially outsource the job to thesame firms.

The fact that the inspection firms, known as"classification societies," are hired and paidby the vessels' owners appears to present "abuilt-in conflict," said Steve Gordon, aHouston maritime lawyer at the firm

Gordon, Elias & Seely. Its clients include eight surviving members of the DeepwaterHorizon crew.

"It's almost like the fox watching the henhouse," said Lee Kincaid, a former shippingcaptain who has represented a labor union for marine engineers at the InternationalMaritime Organization, an agency of the United Nations.

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divinglist: RT @therightblue Oil rigs' safety netquestioned as governments rely on privateinspections http://bit.ly/9aq9oy #oi...http://ow.ly/18Aauhabout 2 hours ago

USAShopper: RT @therightblue Oil rigs' safetynet questioned as governments rely on privateinspections http://bit.ly/9aq9oy #oilspill#oceanabout 2 hours ago

therightblue: Oil rigs' safety net questioned asgovernments rely on private inspectionshttp://bit.ly/9aq9oy #oilspill #oceanabout 4 hours ago

Ak47b2: Oil rigs' safety net is questioned -http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/08/13/AR201

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