Offshore Covid death probe to assess safety steps and treatment
Ken BanksNorth east Scotland reporterCNRDonald Singer had been airlifted from the Ninian Southern platform in 2020An inquiry into the Covid death of a North Sea offshore worker will examine preventative safety measures taken as well as his medical treatment.Donald Singer, 66, from Aberdeen, was a crane operator working on the Ninian Southern platform off Shetland. He was airlifted by helicopter on 3 April 2020 with deteriorating Covid symptoms, and died a month later on 4 May at Aberdeen Royal Infirmary.A preliminary fatal accident inquiry (FAI) hearing heard that airport and heliport Covid measures would form part of the evidence.The Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) had previously announced it would be the first discretionary inquiry into a Covid death. A further hearing will be held early next year.The COPFS said it had undertaken to investigate more than 6,000 Covid-related deaths.There have been two mandatory FAIs completed into the deaths of four men from Covid in custody, and a further five inquiries are ongoing into the deaths of eight men.An FAI is mandatory if a person died in Scotland as a result of an accident at work or in custody.A discretionary FAI is ordered when the lord advocate - Scotland's senior law officer - concludes that a death raises "serious public concern" and that an inquiry is in the public interest.Catriona Dow, for the Crown, told the remote hearing at Aberdeen Sheriff Court that one reason for such inquiries would be if a person might have contracted Covid during the course of their employment.Ms Dow said Covid measures at the airport and heliport used by Mr Singer and at the offshore platform would form part of the inquiry.Concerns about medical treatmentShe said medical treatment offshore and during the transfer to hospital would also be looked at.She said she understood there were concerns about the medical treatment.Sheriff Christine McCrossan told members of Mr Singer's family who attended the hearing that she wanted to say she was "very, very sorry" about the circumstances of his death.A further preliminary hearing will be held in February.Procurator Fiscal Andy Shanks, who leads on fatalities investigations for COPFS, previously said: "Thousands of families lost loved ones during the pandemic, and we undertook the single most significant and challenging investigation of deaths in Scottish history."We remain committed to thorough, professional and independent investigations into every reported death, providing bereaved families with answers and supporting public understanding of the pandemic's impact."As the first discretionary FAI, this is a milestone as we work to establish a better understanding of these deaths and inform decisions made in the future."The Ninian Southern installation is 75 miles (120km) east of Shetland.
