Website header titled 'Through the Flames' by Piper Alpha, a son's story, with an illustration of an oil rig at the bottom.
David Gorman, father of Shane Gorman and victim of the Piper Alpha disaster.

THE BOOK

This is a story shaped by one moment, but it doesn’t start there.

I grew up moving between households, learning early how to adapt. My dad was the steady influence. A mechanic, rally driver, and offshore safety officer who believed in doing things properly.

In July 1988, just days after I left for army training, Piper Alpha exploded.

My dad was one of the 167 men who didn’t come back.

THE JOURNEY

  • Returning home to chaos and uncertainty

  • Avoiding the reality of what had happened

  • Years of poor decisions driven by unresolved grief

  • Gradually rebuilding a sense of purpose

This isn’t a dramatic retelling. It’s how it actually felt to live through it.

A LASTING LEGACY

Piper Alpha changed my life, and many others, but it also changed the offshore industry.

But time creates distance, and distance creates complacency.

This book is bigger than my story. It’s about what happens when people forget, and what it costs when they do.

My dad, David Gorman