That time a topside supervisor saved me from a bad valve lockout

Was working a job on an offshore platform in the Gulf back in 2019. We were swapping out a gate valve at around 90 feet and I had the lockout tagout all set. This older supervisor named Dave comes over the comms and says "Hold up, that valve stem has a secondary bleed port that's not on the drawing." Sure enough, he was right. Would have been a real bad day if I cracked that flange without checking. Anyone else had a topside guy catch something like that?

2 comments

2 Comments

aaron8961mo ago

Actually it was 2018, not 2019... I remember that storm was brewing that week, Tropical Storm Barry if I recall. Dave was a sharp dude, saved a lot of guys over the years with stuff like that.

elliotr391mo ago

Know exactly what you mean, it's wild how the little details stick with you. Same thing happens to me all the time with stuff at work or even just hanging out with friends. Like I can still name the exact gas station where my buddy got that flat tire three summers ago, but I couldn't tell you what I had for lunch last Tuesday. It's just the way our brains latch onto the specific stuff that actually matters, you know? Dave saving dudes in a storm is way more important than the exact year on a calendar.