Baku, December 5, AZERTAC
Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev has signed an Order setting up a State Commission after an offshore oil platform operated by the country`s state oil company (SOCAR) caught fire in the Caspian Sea. The fire took place on the platform No 10 in Azerbaijan's Gunashli oil field. Although rescue attempts were being complicated by a severe storm, 32 people have already been rescued from the scene. According to initial data, one man died in the fire. Search and rescue efforts now continue at the platform.
Under the presidential Order, Prime Minister Artur Rasizade is appointed head of the State Commission. The President ordered the State Commission to ensure the speeding up of search and rescue efforts, investigate the cause of the incident, provide financial and other necessary assistance to those who were injured and the families of those who died in the fire, ensure treatment of the injured, determine serviceability of the platform and estimate damage caused to the facility.
In the Order, the Prosecutor General`s Office and the ministries of Internal Affairs, Emergency Situations and National Security are charged with launching immediate investigation into the cause of the incident.
