When the cause of the fire and explosion on the Deepwater Horizon rig that killed 11 workers in the Gulf of Mexico was still unknown at this writing, it’s clear that the incident is a disaster of the worst magnitude. And, as reports show, it was certainly not an isolated incident.

For BP Plc, which operated the rig that was owned by Transocean, it’s the latest in a string of disasters that can’t help but bring into question the company’s commitment to worker safety and protection of the environment. Unfortunately, though, it appears that BP is more the rule than the exception in a dangerous industry that critics say underreports injuries.

The American Petroleum Institute says that safety is a core principle of the oils and natural gas industry, and the overall safety and environmental performance on the U.S. Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) has shown steady improvement over the past decade with a reduction of 80 percent in its recordable last workday incident rate.

However, lawyers who represent offshore rig workers in personal injury cases say that accidents aboard Gulf oil platforms and semisubmersibles tend to be underreported. Attorney Michael Doyle, of the Houston offshore injury firm Doyle Raizner, told the Houston Chronicle, “There is a big difference between their actual incident/injury rate and their self-reported [rate].”

Doyle said drilling companies failed to report offshore injuries to the Coast Guard in approximately a third of the employee injury cases he has taken.

According to the Department of the Interior’s Minerals Management Service, 35 offshore rig deaths have been recorded in the Gulf of Mexico since 2006.

More than 500 fires on platforms were recorded, with nine considered “major.” At least two people have died in those fires, and about 12 more were seriously injured before the accident on the Deepwater Horizon.

In response, the MMS has launched a set of reforms that will provide federal inspectors more tools, more resources, more independence, and greater authority to enforce laws and regulations that apply to oil and gas companies operating on the Outer Continental Shelf.

“The tragedy aboard the Deepwater Horizon and the massive spill for which BP is responsible has made the importance and urgency of our reform agenda even clearer,” said DOI Secretary Ken Salazar.

“We have been – and will continue to be – aggressive in our response to BP’s spill, but we must also aggressively expand the activities, resources, and independence of federal inspectors so they can ensure that offshore oil and gas operations are following the law, protecting their workers, and guarding against the type of disaster that happened on the Deepwater Horizon.”

He also announced four major new actions designed to prevent a repeat of the incident, including independence for MMS’s energy inspection and enforcement mission; additional resources for that mission; funding for an independent investigation by the National Academy of Engineering; and expanded authority to review exploration plans.

Salazar said he intends to restructure the MMS to establish a separate and independent safety and environmental enforcement entity.

“The job of ensuring energy companies are following the law and protecting the safety of their workers and the environment is a big one, and should be independent from other missions of the agency.”

These changes are the latest in a series of reforms the MMS is considering. For those who died on the Deepwater Horizon, it’s too little, too late. Hopefully for the rest of us, it’s not.