Inspection Detail

Inspection: 1525007.015 - Frank'S International Incorporated

Inspection Information - Office: Wilkes Barre Area Office

Investigation Summary

At 1:30 a.m. on April 13, 2021, an employee was working 30 feet below ground on a Precision Drilling Rig floor running intermediate casing into the well by connecting each length of pipe as it was delivered to the rig floor. The pipe was being transferred between the ground and the rig floor using a Forum Energy Technologies Pipe Wrangler (hydraulic catwalk). The pipe wrangler malfunctioned which required the coworker to cease using the rig level controls and switch to using the ground level controls. While using the ground level controls, the operator must rely on a coworker on the rig floor to provide hand signals to indicate when to skate the pipe onto the floor. During this procedure, the employee was struck in the head by a pipe resting on the pipe wrangler and received a concussion and fractures and was killed.

Keywords: Abdomen, Blunt force, Blunt force trauma, Catwalk, Communication, Concussion, Crushed, Drill Pipe, Drill Rig--Non-Oil, Equipment Failure, Equipment Operator, Falling Object, Fracture, Gas Well, Gas Well Drilling, Head, Hoist, Hoisting Mechanism, Hydraulic Lift, Malfunction, Material Handling, Obstructed View, Pipe, Struck By, Unstable Load, Unstable Position, Well