Coroner releases name of worker killed in oil tank fire near Mead
Posted 3:03 pm, May 27, 2017, by David Mitchell
WELD COUNTY, Colo. — The name of the worker who died in the oilfield-related explosion and fire near Mead this week was released Saturday.
The Weld County Coroner said Oscar Lopez Velasquez of Greeley was killed in the incident Thursday. He was 32 years old.
Three other workers were injured after the oil tank explosion, which happened just more than one month after a home explosion killed two people in the same general area.
The fire started about 3:15 p.m. at an Anadarko Petroleum oil tank battery near Colorado Highway 66 and Weld County Road 13 as workers were doing maintenance work, the Weld County Sheriff’s Office said.
Witnesses said first there was a fire, then the explosion. It sent smoke into the air that could be seen for miles.
The cause of the explosion was under investigation.
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One killed, 3 injured in Anadarko oil tank explosion in Weld County
Posted 4:09 pm, May 25, 2017, by Michael Konopasek and Web Staff, Updated at 09:41PM, May 25, 2017
WELD COUNTY, Colo. -- One person was killed and three others were injured after an oil tank explosion in Weld County on Thursday, just more than one month after a home explosion killed two people in the same general area.
The fire started about 3:15 p.m. at an Anadarko Petroleum oil tank battery near Colorado 66 and Colorado Boulevard as workers were doing maintenance work, the Weld County Sheriff's Office said.
Witnesses said first there was a fire, then the explosion. It sent smoke into the air that could be seen for miles.
The cause of the explosion was under investigation.
Two of the injured workers were taken to North Colorado Medical Center in Greeley for burn treatment and one was taken to Medical Center of the Rockies in Loveland.
The blast is the latest headache plaguing Anadarko, the company investigators said is at the center of both incidents.
Witnesses said they could feel the explosion from more than a mile away.
"It was like two bombs going off back-to-back," Ken Millette said.
"It was a violent explosion," said Laurie Rayhill, who lives close to the well. "I just saw the smoke, and I took off running, calling 911."
Just a month after the deadly Firestone house explosion, people who live and work in the area are noticeably on edge.
The anxiety is high as the state continues to monitor underground gas levels and Anadarko works to inspect its wells.
The oil tank battery is just five miles north of the deadly home explosion in Firestone. A new pocket of gas had been discovered in the Firestone neighborhood.
State investigators said they were in contact with Anadarko to learn what went wrong.
Mountain View Fire Rescue said there was no hazard to nearby residents and there were no evacuations.