Worker Cleaning Equipment Before Deadly Gulf Blast

A drilling company says a worker killed in an offshore explosion was cleaning a piece of equipment during routine maintenance at its oil-and-gas platform in the Gulf of Mexico.

Houston-based Fieldwood Energy LLC says another worker suffered “visible injury” and two other workers reported ringing in their ears. The company says the three injured workers have been released from the hospital.

Fieldwood says the worker who was killed Thursday was cleaning a piece of equipment that separates oil from water liquids when an “isolated pressure event” occurred. The company says the victim was employed by the Louisiana company Turnkey Cleaning Services, which specializes in cleaning offshore facilities.

The explosion happened on the Echo Platform, which is about 12 miles offshore near the mouth of the Mississippi River.