Alert 13 – 05 Drill Pipe Dislodged from Pipe Bin During Drifting Operations
WHAT HAPPENED:
While using a drift mandrel to determine the inside diameter of the drill pipe and check for obstructions (rabbiting), a joint of drill pipe was knocked out of a vertical storage bin. To assist in the drifting operations, an employee was suspended in a man-cage above the pipe racks. The top of the joint of pipe came in contact with the cage-suspended employee’s foot. The contact dislodged the pipe from the vertical pipe storage bin and it fell outward towards the cab of the crane below where it entered the front of the windscreen and landed between the legs of the crane operator. The crane operator was unable to exit the crane cab prior to impact and sustained slight abrasions to his left calf.