The Byford dolphin tragedy still

Transcript

00:00This is a true story. On November 5, 1983, in the northern Norwegian Sea, a four-man diving team was

00:06conducting routine operations on an offshore gas field. Two of the divers, Roy and Eddie,

00:11had just finished their task and were returning to the pressurized living chamber via a diving bell.

00:15Meanwhile, two crew members on the platform were responsible for connecting the diving bell to the

00:19pressurized chamber. At the time, the internal pressure was about 9 atmospheres. The standard

00:24procedure is as follows. Once the diving bell is properly docked with the chamber and the internal

00:29and external pressures are equalized, the outer crew opens the bell's hatch. The two divers then

00:34pass through the connecting tunnel into the pressurized chamber. Afterward, door B, the inner

00:38door to the living chamber is closed and only then is door A. The outer diving bell door detached and

00:44locked out. But on this day, that sequence was fatally broken. After Roy and Eddie entered the

00:49pressurized chamber, the external operators closed door A and released the lock without confirming

00:54that door B had been shut. The sudden pressure difference caused the diving bell to shoot away

00:58like a cannonball. It struck two platform workers directly. One died instantly and the other was

01:03severely injured. Inside the chamber, tragedy struck harder. The internal pressure plummeted from 9

01:08atmospheres to nearly 1 in an instant. Roy and Eddie's bodies were violently expelled so fast that

01:14their limbs vaporized on the spot. Even worse, the door connecting the pressurized chamber and the

01:19living quarters had been left open. The two divers who were asleep inside were crushed and torn apart by the

01:24sudden decompression. May they have felt no pain. This horrifying accident became known as the

01:29Biford Dolphin Incident, still remembered today as one of the most gruesome deaths in history.