Two tragic refinery accidents 6 years and 5,000 miles apart; mistakes were made and people died, but there it seems the similarity ends.
At Texas City it was a British accident caused by British management, that was engulfed in blame, recriminations and lawsuits, almost before any investigation had been carried out with countless pages of media fed hysteria that culminated in an independent commission of enquiry, amongst many others, on which, of course, only Americans sat.
In Milford Haven by contrast the people affected have behaved with quiet dignity and accept that things like this occasionally happen. There are no politicians on soapboxes at the refinery gates and no lawyers proposing no fee no win deals. But most of all no litany of blame and no story to report less than one week after the accident. Investigations are underway and will report in due course. In the meantime, no one is jumping to conclusions.
In the case of BP in Houston, the CEO visited within days and admitted liability; apparently, there has been no visit from Chevron senior management; the police advised them to stay away and they have complied. There has been no press release and no notice on their website. And the accident has received only cursory mention in the US press we have reviewed. Somewhat at odds with the response at Texas City.
In the hysteria of the US reaction has safety performance moved ahead? It seems unlikely as so much time and effort is and will be spent in the courts, where the only winners will be the lawyers.
It seems clear that the US reaction is stridently xenophobic, hysterical and litigious but much as I would hate to see the UK go further down this path, it seems that the British press has been rather supine in its acceptance and the politicians largely disinterested. For all those who complain endlessly about unnecessary Health and Safety, we should remember that this is why the legislation exists and why we must continue to get the balance right.
But we should also remember that this is a dangerous business, as the people of Milford Haven recognise, and that the US has no monopoly on Health and Safety.
