THREE OHIO OIL
&GAS EXPLOSIONS, WELL BLOWOUTS OR GAS RELEASES IN TWO WEEKS –TWO WORKERS
ARE DEAD AND ANOTHER INJURED
Noble County
sheriff identifies dead worker from oil well explosion
November
13, 2014 SUMMERFIELD, Ohio (AP) — Authorities say a worker at an
eastern Ohio oil well has died in an explosion at the facility.
Noble County Sheriff Stephen Hannum said in a statement
Thursday that 48-year-old Norman Butler of Virginia died in the accident
Wednesday afternoon near the CONSOL Energy well pad, about 40 miles north of
Marietta.
Authorities say the explosion occurred near an oil well
head and caused a fire, which was contained but continued to burn Thursday.
Rescuers were also still on the scene late Thursday morning attempting to
recover Butler’s body from the site.
A spokeswoman with Blue Racer Midstream, which owns and
operates the facility, says all production wells and pipelines at the site have been secured. She says
the company will continue to work with authorities to investigate the accident.
Norman Butler, 48, was an electrical
contractor working on a pump condensate operated by Blue Racer Midstream.
The pump moves condensate, a toxic liquid
that is a byproduct of oil and gas production, from oil and gas wells into
pipelines that lead to processing facilities.
Butler would have been testing and
calibrating electrical components on the pump, said Bill Strickland, vice
president of Buffalo Gap Instrumentation and Electrical, the company that
employed Butler.
The explosion was the second major incident
in Ohio in two weeks for Blue Racer.
On Oct. 28, a Blue Racer pipeline caught
fire in Monroe County, just east of Noble County. The pipeline was carrying
natural-gas condensate from eastern Ohio to a natural-gas processing plant in
West Virginia.
The October fire burned several acres of
woods and forced families from their homes.
Blue Racer is a relatively new company
formed by two larger energy companies: Dominion, headquartered in Richmond,
Va., and Caiman Energy II, based in Texas.
The company also recently was cited by the
Ohio EPA for violating an air-pollution permit in Carroll County after nearby
residents complained about odors near one of the company’s facilities. Tests
showed higher-than-allowed levels of volatile organic compounds.
Nikoloric, of Blue Racer, said the company
was working to resolve the EPA violations.
There have been several other incidents at
fracking sites in Ohio this year, including a Jefferson County well that
ruptured last month, releasing natural gas and methane into the air and forcing
evacuation of nearby homes.
And in June, a fire at a Monroe County well
pad caused a spill that stretched 5 miles along a nearby creek and killed more
than 70,000 fish and wildlife.
Worker killed
in pumping skid accident in Ohio's Noble County
November
13, 2014
A
statement today from Blue Racer Midstream:
DALLAS
– Nov. 13, 2014 – Late yesterday afternoon at approximately 4:15 p.m. an
accident occurred at a condensate pumping skid in Noble County, Ohio that is
owned and operated by Blue Racer Midstream (“Blue Racer”). The skid is adjacent
to a CONSOL Energy well pad which was not operating at the time of the
accident. The accident resulted in the death of an employee of Blue Racer’s
electrical contractor. The name of that employee is being withheld pending
notification of family members. There were no other injuries to Blue Racer or
CONSOL Energy employees or contractors.
The
Noble County Sheriff’s office arrived on the scene immediately following the
incident along with local fire departments, the Noble County Emergency
Management Agency (EMA), and the state Fire Marshall. The site has been secured
and all production wells and pipelines have been shut in and secured. Safety is
our first concern. With that in mind, we will work closely and diligently with
all of the proper authorities as they investigate the accident.
Everyone
at Blue Racer Midstream is deeply saddened by this event. Our thoughts and
prayers are with the family members and friends that have been affected. We
would like to extend our appreciation to Noble County Sheriff, Stephen S. Hannum,
and his team, and to local fire departments, the Noble County EMA, and the
State Fire Marshall for their rapid response.
MANDATORY
EVACUATIONS FOR GAS WELL LEAK - Investigation
into gas well incident under way – Jefferson County, Ohio
October 30, 2014
MINGO
JUNCTION - Residents were allowed to return to their homes yesterday and an
investigation into a malfunction at a gas well near the Mingo Sportsmen's Club
off county Road 26 that allowed natural and methane gas to leak into the
atmosphere is now under way. This was a
Utica Shale gas well.
Jefferson
County 911 Center Director Rob Herrington said the mandatory evacuation, that
at one point included residents from approximately 400 homes, was lifted at
6:45 a.m. Wednesday.
"The
well head site was secured and the danger has passed," Herrington
announced in a press release.
"We
initially ordered the evacuation for a two-mile radius surrounding the well
head site. That was then cut back when the weather improved last night. We were
concerned because we had 94 percent humidity and rain showers that were holding
the natural and methane gas close to the ground," explained Herrington.
Herrington
said representatives from the Texas-based Boots and Coots International Well
Control Inc. were flown in to work on the gas well, "that released millions
and millions of cubic feet of gas. The
well head was releasing 5,900 pounds per square inch and it was a very
dangerous situation.
"There
was a concern that the valves at the well head had been sheared off, but the
Boots and Coots crew was able to get down in the well and get the valves to
work and to get them shut off at 6:45 a.m. today. That's when we released the
evacuation order," continued Herrington.
"The
Ohio Department of Natural Resources was on the scene today starting its
investigation into what exactly happened last night. We aren't sure yet but
hope to have a follow-up with the press within the next couple of days,"
Herrington said.
Heidi
Griesmer of the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency said Tuesday night,
"the Ohio EPA is responding to an incident at an oil and gas well in
Jefferson County. The company reported the release to the Agency's 24-hour
spill hotline immediately. Ohio EPA is working with local officials and first
responders, as well as the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, and will be
onsite until the incident is under control," noted Griesmer.
"Everyone
cooperated last night and I am pretty pleased with the outcome. No one was
injured. The law enforcement and fire departments worked very well under the
circumstances going door to door to inform the affected residents and get them
out of their homes. And the public cooperated with us, which made the job
easier," said Herrington.
Jefferson
County Sheriff Fred Abdalla said Buckeye Local schools were closed Wednesday
because of the gas leak.
"We
used the Buckeye Local school buses last night to transport the people who had
to be evacuated to evacuation centers in Brilliant and Smithfield," he
said.
"At
one point we had 13 deputies there along with the Wells Township and Smithfield
police and firefighters from the Brilliant, Hillndale, Wintersville and
Smithfield assisting us with the evacuation. There were a lot of doors to knock
on, but everyone did a very good job," said Abdalla.
"There
was no fire but there was the risk of an explosion because of the gas being
leaked at the site," added Abdalla.
He
said the gas leak initially was reported at approximately 7 p.m.
According
to Herrington, the well is owned by American Energy Partners of Oklahoma City,
with offices in Ohio based in Cambridge.
USA, OH, JEFFERSON CO, OCTOBER 31 2014. MANDATORY
EVACUATIONS FOR GAS WELL LEAK HAS BEEN LIFTED UPDATED: WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 29
2014, 07:52 AM EDT
The
mandatory evacuation in Jefferson County is over at this time. Residents that
were forced to leave their home overnight Wednesday due to gas leak along
township road 187 can return home. Officials say the well site owned by American
Energy Partners is secured at this time and there is no current danger to the
public.
Original Story: A gas well leak is causing major
evacuations in Jefferson County. Officials say it happened near Fernwood State
Park and the Mingo Sportsmen's Club. The specific location is along Township
Road 187 near County Road 26. We're told the call came in around 7:45pm.
Officials say residents could hear and smell the gas, which we're told is
natural and methane gas. Officials believe that a well head owned by American
Energy Partners sheared off. There is no
fire but that is a concern. The Jefferson County Emergency Management Agency
has issued a 1 mile radius mandatory evacuation. Officials have opened up the community center
in Brilliant for residents if they need a place to stay. Residents will be unable to return to the area
until the leak is fixed. To do that, a specialized group from Houston is being
brought in. Here are the roadways affected by the mandatory evacuation:
Township Rd 177 - Cross Creek Township Rd 177A - Cross Creek Browns Hill Rd -
Cross Creek Sheep Rock Rd Call United Way at 2-1-1 for information. United Way
is providing shelter at the Wells Twp. Senior Center, Smithfield Volunteer Fire
Department, and Buckeye North Elementary in Brilliant.
Drilling worker injured in Guernsey County explosion
October
27, 2014
A
well worker in Guernsey County was injured late Friday in a well explosion.
The
injured worker was airlifted to the burn unit at Akron Children's Hospital.
The
well near Quaker City is being drilled by Pennsylvania-based Eclipse Resources.
The
accident occurred about 11:41 p.m. Friday.
The
name of the injured worker was not released.
Few
other details were immediately available.
On
November 14, 2014, another worker died at a fracking site
In northern Colorado today, a man was killed
and two others seriously injured when a frozen high-pressure water line
ruptured. One man was hit by a stream of water or fracking fluid and was killed
by the impact.
The Colorado men were working for
Halliburton, which had been contracted to perform fracking operations at the
well. A Halliburton spokeswoman said the injured men were flown to nearby
hospitals.
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