The Hague: Two people were killed and one seriously injured on Friday in an accident on a North Sea gas rig operated by France's GDF Suez, the coastguard said.
"We received a call at 9:50 am (0750 GMT) that two people were dead and one seriously injured after an accident during testing of rig equipment," coastguard spokesman Peter Verburg told AFP.
The injured man, of Dutch nationality, was flown by helicopter to a hospital in northern Dutch city Leeuwarden where he is in a stable condition.
GDF Suez said in a statement that the accident occurred "during pressure tests on equipment" on the rig around 60 miles (100 kilometres) northwest of the Dutch coast.
"At the time of the incident the platform was out of production and depressurised," the company said.
A GDF Suez spokesman told AFP that the accident happened during "tests on a heat exchanger that was pressurised with water".
"There was a breach in the exchanger for an as yet unknown reason and that hit three people," the spokesman said.
There were 16 people on the rig at the time, including the casualties.
The coastguard said that police were at the scene to investigate the deadly accident.
"We received a call at 9:50 am (0750 GMT) that two people were dead and one seriously injured after an accident during testing of rig equipment," coastguard spokesman Peter Verburg told AFP.
The injured man, of Dutch nationality, was flown by helicopter to a hospital in northern Dutch city Leeuwarden where he is in a stable condition.
"At the time of the incident the platform was out of production and depressurised," the company said.
Advertisement
"There was a breach in the exchanger for an as yet unknown reason and that hit three people," the spokesman said.
Advertisement
The coastguard said that police were at the scene to investigate the deadly accident.
COMMENTS
Advertisement
Cop Injured In Attack In Central Paris, Says French Minister Tens Of Thousands To Welcome Kylian Mbappe To Real Madrid France's Leading Goalscorer Olivier Giroud Ends International Career World's Largest Isolated Tribe Makes Rare Appearance In New Footage Barack Obama Wants Joe Biden To Pull Out Of US Presidential Race: Report 32 Dead In Bangladesh Unrest, Protesters Set Fire To State TV Headquarters Comedy Legend Bob Newhart Dead At 94: Publicist Israeli Strike Kills Field Commander In Elite Hezbollah Unit: Report Delhi-San Francisco Air India Flight Diverted To Russia After Engine Glitch Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world.