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| 2010 Karl Klippenger Jr. 04-20-2010; Natchez - | |
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| Tweet Topic Started: Apr 24 2010, 10:01 AM (1,307 Views) | |
| Ell | Apr 24 2010, 10:01 AM Post #1 |
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![]() The Natchez Democrat Search for oil rig workers suspended Published Saturday, April 24, 2010 VIDALIA — The U.S. Coast Guard announced Friday evening it had suspended the search for the 11 missing oil rig workers in the Gulf of Mexico. Two of the missing men were from the Miss-Lou, Wyatt Kemp, 27, of Monterey and Karl Kleppinger, 38, of Natchez. The 11 men were missing following a major oil rig explosion late Tuesday night. Kemp’s wife Courtney Kemp said the family had been expecting the search to be suspended, and that she appreciated the rescue and recovery efforts. “I would like to thank everybody for their prayers, because in our family God is the most important thing, and we believe God will see us through this and that we are very grateful for the time we got to spend with Wyatt,” she said. “People will never know how much their prayers and support, phone calls, food and everything they have done has meant to us, to me and my family.” Courtney Kemp asked for continued prayers, and that people who had stories they wanted to share about Wyatt would write them down for a future memorial service. Kleppinger’s mother-in-law, Kathy Sills, said that the family had also been expecting the news, but that things were hard to process without the recovery of her son-in-law’s body. “The closure is not there,” she said. She also thanked the community, and especially their church, for supporting the family in the ways it could. “We have never felt such an outpouring of love and concern, so many people praying, total strangers,” Sills said. “This is such a close-knit community, we can feel the love and prayers, and that is the only thing that is sustaining us.” The search was suspended at approximately 5 p.m. In a statement released at the time of the suspension, Rear Adm. Mary Landry, commander of the Eighth Coast Guard District, expressed sympathy for the families of the missing men. “Suspending a search is one of the most difficult decisions a commander has to make,” she said. The three-day rescue effort by the coast guard covered approximately 5,375 square miles. The rig on which the explosion occurred, which was nearly the size of two football fields, sank into the gulf Thursday. A total of 126 people were on board at the time of the explosion. Seventeen were injured, four critically, in addition to the 11 missing crew members. The cause of the explosion is unknown. http://www.natchezdemocrat.com/news/2010/a...uspended/?print |
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| Ell | Apr 28 2010, 07:00 AM Post #2 |
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Family of Missing Deepwater Horizon Oil Rig Worker Files Lawsuit The law firm of Gordon, Elias & Seely, LLP, has filed a lawsuit on behalf of the family of Karl Kleppinger, Jr., one of the missing 11 men who was on The Transocean Deepwater Horizon Oil Rig in the Gulf of Mexico when the fire and explosion occurred. Houston, TX (PRWEB) April 28, 2010 -- On Tuesday, April 20, 2010 the semi-submersible oil drilling platform, Transocean Deepwater Horizon had an explosion and fire off the southern coast of Louisiana in the Gulf of Mexico. Two days later on Thursday, April 22, 2010, around 10 a.m., the oil drilling rig sunk to the bottom of the Gulf after the fire had burned for about 36 hours. Karl Kleppinger, Jr and his son Aaron Right now we’re trying to find anybody who has information, anybody who might have seen him and what happened, said R. Todd Elias, the family’s attorney. The family would like to have some information about what happened to him... There were 126 people aboard the state-of-the-art semi-submersible platform at the time of the incident. Most were able to escape in lifeboats, but 11 were missing and were never found despite a massive search effort by the U.S. Coast Guard. The search for the missing workers covered 2000 square miles. One of the missing men was 38 year-old Karl Kleppinger Jr. of Natchez, Mississippi who is survived by his wife, Tracy and 17 year-old son, Aaron. “Right now we’re trying to find anybody who has any information, anybody who might have seen him and what happened,” said R. Todd Elias, the family’s attorney. “The family would like to have some information about what happened to him, and so far Transocean isn’t telling us anything. They just tell us they don’t know.” Karl Kleppinger Jr., is a former Desert Storm veteran who spent more than 10 years working on oil rigs. He was a dedicated floorman who worked on the Deepwater Horizon off the Louisiana coast. He was among the 11 workers presumed dead after the Coast Guard officially called off the search on Friday, April 23, 2010. Officials stated that they believed the workers never made it off the oil rig. On April 22, 2010 a lawsuit (Cause No. 2010-25245, filed in Harris County ED101J015754153) was filed by Houston-based law firm, Gordon, Elias & Seely, L.L.P., against Transocean Offshore Deepwater Drilling, Inc., Deepwater Horizon, and BP Products North America, Inc. on behalf of Kleppinger's wife and son. The lawsuit claims that the defendants were negligent and that the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig was not seaworthy. At the time of the explosion and fire, Kleppinger had been away from his family for about three weeks. On Tuesday night, just before the blast, he made his nightly call home to his wife, Tracy. They talked about how he would be ashore in the morning and how he planned to buy a new washing machine to replace a broken one on the following day. His wife, Tracy recalled the conversation. "He couldn't get home soon enough this time. I don't know why," she said. "I can't explain, there was this feeling that things were bad." "He says, 'Baby, I will be there in a couple of hours, I'll be home,'" When he asked,"How are things?" she said, "Apart from my washer, which you're getting me Wednesday, everything's fine," she recalled. He will be missed. A hero and a fine person has been lost. In an interview with Ashley Rodrigue from ABC station WBRZ News channel 2 in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, his father, Karl Kleppinger, Sr., who lives in Zachary, LA, said that he never feared for his son's life, despite his offshore job. The explosion, fire and sinking of the Deepwater Horizon also caused environmental damage. An oil spill has resulted from the incident which now covers over 1,800 square miles. That is an area bigger than the state of Rhode Island. A response team is trying to stop the leaks, but the oil is leaking at the rate of 42,000 gallons of oil per day and continues to spread through the Gulf of Mexico. Material is being put out to contain it but the oil leaks are still an ongoing problem. Federal regulators were already in the process of writing new rules after a review found 41 deaths in oil rig accidents between 2001 and 2007. According to the Federal Minerals Management Service, since 2001 there have been 858 fires and explosions, 69 offshore deaths and 1,349 injuries in the Gulf of Mexico. Senator Mary Landrieu of Louisiana is calling for a full Congressional Investigation into the tragic event. She is calling for the U.S. Coast Guard and the Minerals Management Service to conduct a swift and thorough investigation into the incident. Related searches: Transocean Deepwater Horizon Lawsuit Deepwater Horizon Lawyer Deepwater Horizon Investigation The law firm of Gordon, Elias & Seely, L.L.P. is quite versed in successfully suing Transocean. Just this year alone, they represented the family of one of the most deadly accidents that ever occurred in Transocean’s history. Anyone affected by this tragedy should contact an expert maritime lawyer directly at 800-773-6770, 713-668-9999, or 800-491-3377. Their lawyers are licensed in Texas and their offices are in Houston where Transocean is situated. Steve Gordon is also licensed in Louisiana http://www.prweb.com/releases/deepwater-ho...rweb3932394.htm |
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| Ell | May 26 2010, 05:30 AM Post #3 |
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Memorial held for rig blast victims By HOLBROOK MOHR - Associated Press Reprint or license Text Size: tool nameclose tool goes here JACKSON — Eleven men who died in the April 20 oil-rig explosion were honored Tuesday at a somber memorial service with tributes from country music stars and drilling company executives. Aaron Dale Burkeen, a 37-year-old man from Philadelphia was one of the men who died. His family said they were moved by the event, attended by hundreds. “It was truly touching. There will never be complete closure because we don’t have the body to see,” said Burkeen’s uncle, Aaron Bryan, for whom he was named. “I think it helps to see the other families.” Gallery:Memorial held for rig blast victims Most attendees left in a steady rain without talking to reporters. Transocean Ltd., owner of the Deepwater Horizon rig, organized the memorial, held under tight security at the Jackson Convention Complex. Police on motorcycles and in cruisers patrolled the block. Security guarded entrances. “This is the one of the most difficult days for many of us here. But for the families of our 11 lost colleagues, this is just another of many difficult days,” Transocean CEO Steven Newman said. Country music group Diamond Rio performed “I Believe,” “One More Day” and “In God We Trust.” Singer Trace Adkins spoke to the service by video link, describing how he’d worked on Gulf oil rigs before making it big as a singer. “It was hard work, it was dangerous work, but nobody expects it to end like this,” Adkins said. It was impossible to judge the reactions of those in attendance. Reporters weren’t allowed into the memorial but were ushered into a large room where the service was broadcast on closed-circuit television. Before the memorial began, an image on the screen showed 11 bronze-colored hard hats placed in a semicircle around a white cross. A large picture of the sun setting over calm waters was in the background. A bell rang 11 times, once for each man lost when a blowout caused the massive explosion and fire that ultimately sank the rig. Newman and Keelan Adamson, Transocean’s North American Divison director, presented the families with the hard hats. The closed-circuit feed cut to pictures of the men while the presentation was made, so the exchange was not visible. Read more: http://www.sunherald.com/2010/05/25/220963...l#ixzz0p2B5iw5o |
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