A British grandfather who survived the sinking of a drilling rig off Gabon is still not able to return home more than three weeks after the disaster.
Richard Richardson, 68, escaped with only the clothes he was wearing and a few euros from the Prospector 5 when it sank off Mayumba on October 24.
The marine warranty surveyor from Hull, Yorkshire, is among ‘many’ British workers who have since been staying at a secure hotel complex in Port Gentil, but his family say he is not free to leave.
His daughter Jessica Matisak said their family is now locked in ‘a crisis with zero feeling of control’ as they wait without answers for his return.
She added that her father has seven grandchildren ‘who all want their grandfather home’.
A judicial investigation was opened on October 25 to determine the circumstances surrounding the incident.
Ms Matisak said her father is co-operating with investigators but does not speak French, and that none of the workers have been charged with anything.
Trying to figure out if there is a formal restriction on his travel and how the Gabon legal system works are all issues which they and the families of other British survivors are now trying to grapple with.
Richard Richardson, 68, from Hull, escaped the sinking rig with just the clothes he was wearing and a few euros
Ms Matisak, 40, added: ‘He is answering their questions. He is going to the interviews. He is doing everything they are asking for.
‘He does not want to be there and he is also trying to do everything he can not to upset anybody.’
The Richardsons currently speak to Richard daily on a phone he has been given but Diane, 68, his wife of 36 years, said ‘his mental health with all this is not good now and he is getting further downhearted.’
His family say they are concerned he may be moved to a ‘less comfortable’ location in Africa and possibly lose contact with them altogether.
Son Josh Richardson said: ‘We have never before as a family been in a position where our father is in a foreign country, held against his will with a prospect of being moved to a remote location in uncomfortable circumstances.’
The British families of the workers who survived the rig disaster are now trying to get in touch with other families to support each other.
Josh added: ‘We have serious concerns about their welfare.
‘These guys all survived a traumatic experience. He (his father) got out with just the clothes on his back – no passport, phone or wallet.
‘None of them have been charged with anything. It has been three weeks and these guys are still out there.’
Borr Drilling owns and operates the Prospector 5 oil and gas rig.
The rig is contracted to support BW Energy’s drilling operations off Gabon, and it had not yet begun drilling, Reuters had previously reported.
The Prospector 5 was owned and operated by Borr Drilling and had been contracted to support BW Energy’s drilling operations off the coast of Gabon
Of the 115 people on board, 110 made it ashore.
On November 2, Borr Drilling said that four bodies had been recovered and there was a search for one person.
Borr Drilling said preliminary information suggests the rig experienced a punch-through event during preload activities, resulting in a loss of stability and its subsequent sinking.
A punch-through event occurs when one or more of an oil rig’s legs penetrates the seabed deeper than intended, causing the structure to become unstable.
The rig was preparing to begin drilling when the structural failure occurred.
Gabon’s Ministry of Petroleum and Gas activated a crisis unit following the disaster and ordered the navy to reinforce search-and-rescue operations.
Helicopters and underwater equipment were deployed as part of the operation.
The company also said it had commissioned an independent investigation, with Borr Drilling’s chief executive Bruno Morand saying: ‘it is also critically important to establish a thorough and objective understanding of what occurred and all possible causes of a catastrophic loss of stability are in scope and will be considered.’
He said the investigation will fully consider all evidence and assess every potential cause before reaching a final determination.
The Foreign Office has been contacted for a response.
