Stop the blame game, tell us the truth, Massy worker's family demands of NiQuan

“STOP the blame game and tell us the truth,” relatives of Allan Lane Ramkissoon who died after a June 15 incident at NiQuan Energy Trinidad plant, are demanding.

The plea was triggered by a paid advertisement in which NiQuan lay responsibility for Ramkissoon’s death on his employer, Massy Energy Engineered Solutions Limited (MEES).

MEES is yet to respond to the ad.

Ramkissoon’s sister Ruth told the Newsday on Wednesday she has not read the entire ad, or an accompanying article in a daily newspaper, but the headline seems to suggest that NiQuan is distancing itself from any culpability.

“Based on what I have read so far, it seems that NiQuan is playing the blame game at this point. Everyone is just trying to cover themselves.”

“Our family just want justice. We want to know the truth about what happened at plant on June 15 to cause my brother to sustain burns to 60 per cent of his body.

She said she hopes the investigations by the Ministry of Energy, OSHA and MEES would give them the answers they seek.

With the exception of Ramkissoon’s wife Sarah, who accompanied him to a specialist burns unit in Colombia where he died on June 18, Ruth said her parents, Danny and Christine, were denied the opportunity to see him before he left and while he was being treated at the Southern Specialist Medical Centre, San Fernando.

Ramkissoon’s wife has since returned to TT, but his body is still to be repatriated.

“We just want to know when his body will be coming home to us. It’s exhausting, we are feeling drained, physically, emotionally and mentally. It is taking a toll on all of us. We just want him home so he can be laid to rest and rest in peace,” Ruth said.

“Massy has assured us that they are working on getting the body back and that they will let us know as soon as they have confirmation.”

She said MEES is also assisting the family with whatever services they need at this time, but no information in terms of what caused the mishap or her brother’s death.

Ramkissoon’s mom Christine who also spoke to Newsday admitted, “I am so confused, I don’t know what to say or what to do. I am hearing things but I don’t really know nothing. We are just living one day at a time, trying to cope.”

In a paid advertisement NiQuan said “Massy is the professional engineering and maintenance contractor engaged by NiQuan under a long-term Master Services Agreement pursuant to which Massy provides all qualified professional maintenance, engineering and related services for the GTL plant.

“The initial injury to Mr Ramkissoon was sustained while he was carrying out permitted-to-work preparations for routine planned maintenance works at the plant. The plant was not running at the time except for production of steam.

“NiQuan ceased all work permits for the plant in recognition of the unfortunate fatality and also to allow a period for the maintenance, engineering and plant operations teams, along with all other staff and contractors to grieve, regroup attend sessions and be fully fit for resumption of Plant operations. “

NiQuan said after the incident the company engaged independent root-cause-analysis (RCA) expert Edward R Brathwaite, director and principal consultant at Incredible Safety Services Ltd, in a joint exercise with Massy.

It said both companies are working together with the regulatory bodies in full compliance and transparency in support of investigations being carried out by the regulatory authorities.

On June 21 the OSH agency issued a prohibition letter to NiQuan ordering it cease all activities associated with the reworks line (purging and steaming) with immediate effect, until the danger is removed and NiQuan has complied with the OSH Act.

NiQuan said it has reviewed the systems of work and has already implemented the enhancements and measures which will prevent recurrence of an incident of this nature.

In its ad, NiQuan also said it was visited by the police after Ramkissoon’s death, but was able to explain no criminal act was committed, but rather the matter involved an industrial accident.

NiQuan said that incident dubbed the “second incident”, the first relating to an explosion in April 2021, occurred when the plant was out of production resulting from a permit to work for preparatory works of purging and cleaning the piping prior to implementing a management of change in preparation for certain piping modification to increase production efficiencies and was not related to the 2021 explosion.