Firm fined £350,000 after chemical tank burst left worker injured
Newsline MediaA firm has been fined £350,000 after a worker was badly injured when a chemical tank burst in an Aberdeenshire town.
Hundreds of barrels of calcium chloride brine - a non-toxic chemical used in oil and gas drilling - were released after the corroded tank ruptured in Peterhead in 2023.
Philip Moir, who was working as a contractor, said he was still dealing with the effects of multiple broken bones and chemical burns three years later.
At Peterhead Sheriff Court, Tetra Technologies admitted breaching the Health and Safety at Work Act.
Emergency services descended on the offshore supply base after the incident on 21 June 2023.
The Scottish Ambulance Service sent three ambulances and a special operations response team, while the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service sent two fire appliances and specialist resources.
Moir was taken to Aberdeen Royal Infirmary and four other people were treated at the scene as a precaution.
The site was evacuated and operations temporarily halted.
In a statement released through law firm Digby Brown after the case, Moir said the fine had not given him any sense of closure.
"Tetra had a duty to make sure everything was safe and clearly it wasn't," he said.
"It's honestly a miracle I wasn't killed when the silo burst.
"Not only have I lost my career but everything I planned for the future is now uncertain."
He added: "This has been truly life changing in the worst way imaginable but I want to thank everyone who has supported me as I continue my recovery."
