Kelly Helfrich
Individual Ethical Challenge: #1 Balancing Organization and Individual Interests
On July 6, 1988, one of Oxidental Petroleum’s offshore oil platforms, Piper Alpha, experienced a catastrophic
explosion resulting in devastating destruction and loss of 165 lives. The release of light hydrocarbons occurred as a
result of the crew being unaware that a Pressure Relief Valve had been removed and replaced with a blind flange;
hydrocarbons escaped from the flange and formed a flammable vapor cloud which eventually exploded. 1
The ethical dispute comes into focus when looking at the actions of those on the surrounding platforms. Due
to a shared pipeline to the shore, backflow of hydrocarbons flowed onto Piper Alpha fueling the fire. Rather than
shutdown production, which would cost the company millions of dollars, the surrounding crews continued
production and awaited instructions from management on the mainland. There was a confrontation between a shift
manager and an operator on a nearby rig in which the operator wanted to shut down, but the shift manager would
not allow it without mainland approval.1
The decisions of the operator and shift manager can be evaluated using Santa Clara University’s “Framework
for Thinking Ethically.”2 The ethical decision was recognized by the shift manager when he saw Piper Alpha crew
members abandoning the rig; he knew the risk of continuing production (fueling the fire on Piper Alpha), but felt
pressure from the company to keep production running. The next step involves gathering the facts.2 The shift
manager could physically see the damage to Piper Alpha, but was unsure as to whether or not they should shut down
their own rig. The communication from mainland was delayed for several hours, which left the shift manger with this
crucial ethical decision.
The shift supervisor had a list of possible actions to evaluate: shut down the platform or keep it running. If
he shut down the platform and it ended up not being necessary, he would have cost the company millions of dollars
and he could have lost his job. If he didn’t shut down, he could cause damage to the other rigs and potentially his
own (depending on how far the vapor cloud had traveled) and have the potential for loss of life. The stakeholders
(shift manager, Piper Alpha crew, company, other crews) would be affected by the decision of the shift manager.
Personally, I think the supervisor should have shut down the unit as soon as he saw men in the water surrounding the
rig or as he saw the fire continue to rage with no sign of the explosion coming under control. The consequences to
this action would be significantly less loss of life on Piper Alpha; however, if the shift manager had shut down and it
was later determined there was no need to shut down, he would have cost the company millions of dollars and
would most likely have been fired. The decision to continue producing product resulted in the loss of human life and
the guilt of being associated with their deaths.
Legally, the shift manager did not commit any crimes, so he could not be prosecuted. There is no law that
creates a legal responsibility to help another person. Ethically, the right thing to do would be to prevent the loss of
more lives on Piper Alpha by shutting down the production unit; even if he was fired, this would be considered a
more ethical outcome than the loss of life. The issue becomes complicated due to the fact that the manager did not
have all the facts. Company protocol was to wait to receive instructions from mainland to shut down. Although he
should have inferred that the situation on Piper Alpha was not under control due to the continuation of the fire and
the men abandoning the rig, there was no hard fact that the situation on Piper Alpha would not be resolved in the
near future.
As a result of this incident, manufacturing industries across the globe instituted a rule in which anyone can
halt production if there is a safety concern. I believe an important lesson can be, and should be, learned from the
Piper Alpha catastrophe; no matter your rank, experience, etc., it is your ethical responsibility to raise concerns if you
believe an unethical event is occurring. Leaders can learn from the incident as well; all safety and ethical concerns
should be dealt with immediately and treated with utmost importance. The consequences of ignoring an unethical
decision are often far more catastrophic than those of ignoring the issue.
Kelly Helfrich
Individual Ethical Challenge: #1 Balancing Organization and Individual Interests
Literature Citation
1. "Incident Summary: Piper Alpha Case History." Center for Chemical Process Safety. American
Institute of Chemical Engineers, 2005. Web. 23 Sept. 2013. <http://www.aiche.org/ccps/topics/elementsprocess-safety/commitment-process-safety/process-safety-culture/piper-alpha-case-history>.
2. Velasquez, Manuel, Dennis Moberg, Michael J. Meyer, Thomas Shanks, Margaret McLean, David
Decosse, Claire Andre, and Kirk Hanson. "A Framework for Thinking Ethically." A Framework
for Thinking Ethically. Santa Clara University, May 2009. Web. 23 Sept. 2013.
<http://www.scu.edu/ethics/practicing/decision/framework.html>.