The final toll is still unclear, but the tragedy is now confirmed. A worker of Indian origin lost his life when the Prospector 5 drilling rig sank at around 8:37 p.m. on Saturday, October 24, 2026, off Mayumba in Nyanga province. Four other people remain missing, according to a statement from Borr Drilling, the Norwegian company that owns the unit.
There were 115 people aboard when the accident happened. Most of them were rescued during the night and brought back to shore. For the families of those still missing, however, the wait drags on, and every passing hour makes the outcome more uncertain.
The jack-up rig was working on the Dussafu Marine licence on behalf of BW Energy, which was preparing to drill four new wells. Everything apparently went wrong during a delicate jacking operation, as the rig was approaching the MaBoMo production facility. Its legs are believed to have sunk into the seabed, causing a sudden loss of stability. Within moments the structure disappeared beneath the waves, watched helplessly by workers stationed on a nearby installation.
Deeply moved by the disaster, President Brice Clotaire Oligui Nguema has taken personal charge of overseeing the operations. After deploying the Gabonese Navy, he asked his Congolese counterpart, Denis Sassou Nguesso, to extend the search into the territorial waters of the Republic of Congo. Congolese naval vessels are expected to reinforce the resources already committed by Libreville.
The hours following the sinking were marked by considerable confusion. In its official update on Sunday, the Ministry of Petroleum and Gas reported five people missing and did not confirm any deaths. Some local outlets reported that three bodies had been found, while others claimed instead that three survivors had been pulled from the water alive. None of these accounts has been confirmed by the authorities, and the toll could still change.
The ministry has opened a technical investigation to establish the exact cause of the accident and identify any liability. Environmental concerns are also mounting. Anti-pollution equipment remains on standby to protect the coastline and Mayumba National Park, known for beaches where sea turtles come to nest.
For Gabon’s oil industry, the disaster revives painful memories. In March 2024, a fire on Perenco’s Becuna platform near Port-Gentil killed five people and left one missing. The oil minister at the time described it as the worst tragedy in the country’s petroleum history.
