The safety meeting.
The safety meeting.
-Tururup turururururup turururururururururu, rup!
The man opened his eyes with that familiar sound of his cell phone singing the notes of the flight of the botfly, by Nikolai Rimsky Korsakov, indicating that it was time to wake up, the device marked 6:11 in the morning of June 20, 2002, The Sun was born in that semi-desert landscape, showing a beautiful sunrise to that man who, when he could, knew very well how to enjoy the beauty of a sunrise.
-The heat is going to be strong, Edgar!
Juan de Dios tells his friend and co-worker who was dozing near him.
-If I drill, even the birds are going to fall.
Edgar answers, who was an athletic young man of about 22 years old, with dark skin and mongoloid eyes.
-Also today is the longest day of the year. –replies Juan de Dios. –Since it is the summer solstice on June 20 and it will take 15 hours for the Sun to set, that is when Quetzalcóatl descends the pyramid of Chichén-Itzá, today at noon and with the stepped shape of the pyramid, the shadow of the Sun draw the body of a snake that goes down the side, ending in one of the heads that are placed at the end of the stairs; Who knows how the Mayans arranged the pyramid at the exact angle? So that precisely today an effect of light and shadow is created that still impresses locals and strangers.
-I would like to see it. –Edgar says.
-I already saw it. –Juan de Dios tells him. -Many years ago my dad took me.
-So it was centuries ago, driller!
He tells her as a joke; Edgar to Juan, as if alluding to his age.
-How do you see yourself at 22? Best dog! How do you see me at 33? Dazed jumps!
Juan de Dios replied, returning the joke, and so they continued their trip, talking and joking between family and work issues, those 9 men, who made up the national crew of the oil well drilling team no. 722, from the Canadian oil company Presicion Drilling, installed in the state of Tamaulipas in Mexico, about 30 minutes from the large industrial city of Reynosa, located on the border with Texas, USA; Juan de Dios was the driller and shift manager; (30 years old, white complexion, light brown hair, somewhat long, stocky build of about 90 kilos and 1.78 tall)
-Where taking us, Mister Pedro?
He asked the driver of that recent model Ford van, who was a man of about 60 years old, almost 2 meters tall and with all the appearance of a strong northern rancher, he answered.
-Here near boss, about 10 minutes along the highway to Monterrey and another 15 minutes, entering on the left.
-Do you know what the name of the well is? -Edgar asks.
-It's called Caudaloso 2 and they say it was blow out off last night. –Mister Pedro answers.
-Did you hear that? –asks Juan de Dios. –The well is out of control on the longest and hottest day of the year; Did they bring their supply of Coca-Cola to withstand the heat?
Their cell phone now read 6:50 a.m., when they saw rising in the middle of that mesquite jungle the tall tower about 40 meters high, painted red and white, contrasting with the desert colors of that jungle that surrounded it, where Pedro parked the passenger van in reverse as indicated by safety regulations, on the side of the dining room where the drawers were located, in which the crew personnel kept their personal effects and personal protective equipment or PPE for its acronym. in Spanish, the crew got out of the unit and began to prepare for the day, which began with the mandatory safety talk at the beginning of each shift and upon arrival at the well, the Rig Manager of that drilling team came out to greet them, who was basically the person in charge of the proper functioning of the mechanical parts and safety regulations, as well as the good condition of the various tools, and safety systems that existed in the work area, his name: Ron Olsen, a tall, thin, white 40-year-old guy and with blue eyes, with all the appearance of those indomitable and stubborn immigrants who conquered the old North American West, shortly thereafter Mike Ursulak arrived, a young and athletic drilling supervisor, with the appearance of an ice hockey player, bald and friendly who He knew how to get along with the workers as if he were among countrymen, the Company Man also arrived; Luís Molina, of medium height, light complexion and dark hair, originally from Veracruz, already known by that group of national workers, having earned their trust due to his jovial and friendly character typical of Veracruz residents.
With everyone ready and settled around the metal dining table, those workers, a mix of Canadian and Mexican personnel, began the day with the safety talk of the day.
"Well, the situation is dangerous," said rig manager Ron. –And full attention is required, the well wants to go out of control, there is no control fluid circulation and the upper well shut-off valves are closed.
-We are calculating the material and time necessary to restore circulation, we are at 2116 meters and we only have 182 left, so that we can consider it as finished and the company can charge it, they must be alert and always ready for any event, the burner It is ready to be lit and in the event of a loss of control, there will always be a man at the pressure choke valve, releasing excess pressure to the burner.
Edgar raises his hand to ask a question.
-What is the maximum pressure allowed?
-600 pounds! -Ron answers. –Although the well wall is already fractured in some part of the discovered hole, it is very important not to exceed that pressure to avoid further opening the fractures in the formation.
-Ok mates. –says Juan. –You heard it, so everyone to your positions and while cleaning the equipment, remember that if you hear the alarm you must first identify it and then act.
-Does everyone know the alarm codes?
The workers kept a silence that Juan broke with the characteristic high tone of his voice.
-From what I hear, no, 1 ring indicates a crash, 2 rings is the fire alarm, and 3 rings spaced apart is an abandonment alarm, although also if you hear the bugle sounding continuously, it is because the driller has already burned or died, and you didn't have the chance to give the 3 rings, make sure you first identify the type of alarm and then act, now let's hit it hard and with enthusiasm as we already have 14 days left.
