Bereaved families and survivors gathered today for a memorial service on the 20th anniversary of the Piper Alpha tragedy.

On July 6 1988, 167 people lost their lives after a gas leak on the North Sea platform ignited, engulfing Piper Alpha in a massive fireball.

Survivors, relatives of those who died, industry representatives and local people have been invited to the Kirk of St Nicholas Uniting in Aberdeen for the service.

It is being led by the Rev Andrew Jolly, chaplain to the UK oil and gas industry.

Scotland's First Minister Alex Salmond, The Duke of Gloucester and Scotland Office Minister David Cairns are also expected to attend.

The church, which holds 1,100, contains a chapel known as the Oil Chapel which holds the Book of Remembrance that records the names of all those who perished in the Piper Alpha disaster.

The names of those who died will be read out in the service.

Later there will be an Act of Remembrance at the Piper Alpha memorial statue in Hazlehead Park.

There were only 62 survivors in what remains the world's worst offshore disaster.

But the maritime union RMT yesterday warned the offshore industry still does not pay enough attention to safety.

The union claimed enforcement on safety issues was lax and the number of inspectors had fallen by almost 40% since 1994.

He said that the people of Scotland should "hang our heads in shame" if the victims were ever forgotten.

He said: "There must always be names with faces, stories of sacrifice and of love, devotion and faith, so that what has gone on before does not become just another statistic.

"If we as a community, or as an oil and gas industry, or as a city, or as a country allow that to happen, we should hang our heads in shame.

"Today here in this kirk we will remember them by name, reminding us not just who they are, but who they were and who they will always be to those who knew and loved them."

As the names were read out, many of the hundreds who gathered in the church wept.

Before the service, Mr Salmond said: "The service serves a double purpose, as a memorial but also as a reminder of what happened 20 years ago, to help ensure it doesn't happen again.

"We have a new generation of workers in the North Sea now, and every generation has to be reminded."

Outside the church families of the victims spoke of the service's importance to them. Sheila Leggat, whose scaffolder husband Findlay died in the disaster aged 37, said: "It is nice to know that not just Findlay but all the men are remembered."

Mrs Leggat, from Glasgow, attended the service with her grandchildren and three of her four children.

She said: "It doesn't get any easier to come to terms with.

"He was the person who kept the family together, and part of me went with him that day.

"You have got to learn from your mistakes and I hope nothing like this happens again - I don't want any family to go through what we've gone through.

"I would sell my soul to get him back."

Ann Gillanders, whose husband Ian's body was never recovered from the disaster, said the service had been an emotional experience.

Mrs Gillanders, who helped form a Piper Alpha support group after the disaster, said: "It was emotional, but it was very nice.

"When the names were read out it really got to you, but I am pleased at how many people came and I hope they were helped by it."