Incident Reporting
Incidents on the OCS involve everyday operations and duties. An unsafe act or condition may cause a worker to lose his or her life or be seriously injured. Unsafe acts or conditions may also result in spills or other incidents that have the potential to affect the environment. The Bureau uses the results of incident investigations and data analysis to identify incident causes and trends. Appropriate actions are then identified to prevent the recurrence of these incidents and to enhance safety and environmental protection on the OCS. These actions may include publishing Safety Alerts, initiating technical research, developing new/revised regulations or standards, changing inspection strategies, holding safety workshops, etc. Incident data is also used to calculate performance indicators.
On April 17, 2006, the Bureau published a Final Rule (FR 19640) that revised the agency's incident reporting requirements. The new Incident Reporting Rule more clearly defines which incidents must be reported, broadens the scope to include incidents that have the potential to be serious, and requires the reporting of standard information for both oral and written reports. This will result in more consistent incident reporting and the collection of more reliable incident information. Prevention of future undesirable incidents on the OCS is a paramount goal of both industry and the Bureau. Timely and accurate information will help us attain that goal.
This webpage is designed to answer questions that the industry or others may have about the new incident reporting requirements. We hope the information below is useful. If you have any questions, please contact one of the following people:
- Headquarters: Stacey Noem
- Alaska Region:
- Gulf of Mexico Region: Charles Arnold
- Pacific Region: Daniel Knowlson
District and Regional Contact Numbers and Procedures for Reporting Incidents
Oil Spill Program Emergency Contact Information
BSEE Safety and Incident Investigations Division (SIID) Hotline: 1-877-440-0173 or 202-208-5646
DOI Office of the Inspector General (OIG) Hotline: 1-800-424-5081
To report oil spills, contact regional and/or district staff using current emergency reporting requirements. Remember that all oil spills must be reported to the National Response Center (1-800-424-8802)