Assam gas well fire could take 4 weeks to extinguish, says OIL

Oil India Limited mentioned on Tuesday that it might take at the very least 4 extra weeks to manage the hearth and plug the blowout at a pure fuel properly that ignited earlier within the day in Baghjan in Assam’s Tinsukia district.

The fuel properly had been spewing fuel and condensate for the reason that blowout started on May 27.

The fireplace broke out on the properly a day after three specialists from Singapore had reached the realm to try plugging the properly.

“Emergency meetings are underway with the expert team. They have expressed it is now a safe environment for working and are confident that the situation can be controlled and the well capped safely,” OIL mentioned in an announcement.

“The situation demands arrangement of large quantities of water, installation of high discharge pumps and removal of debris. All the operations as per the experts will take about four weeks. Efforts will be made to reduce this time frame as much as possible,” it added.

Meanwhile, Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal directed industries minister Chandra Mohan Patowary to hurry to the positioning and take inventory of the scenario. He additionally advised use of IAF plane to douse the hearth.

“Instructions have been issued to district officials to ensure safety of local residents. Police, military, para-military forces and NDRF are present at the spot,” Sonowal instructed journalists.

“I have apprised Union petroleum minister Dharmendra Pradhan about the incident and asked him to take steps to contain the fire and the blowout. Indian Air Force (IAF) can also play a role in controlling the fire and I have asked defence minister Rajnath Singh about it,” he added.

Sonowal requested residents of the realm and Tinsukia city, which is 9 km away from the positioning to not panic and warranted all assist from the state authorities.

Smoke might be seen billowing from the properly a number of kilometers away from the positioning near Dibru Saikhowa National Park and the eco-sensitive Maguri Mottapung wetland.

“The fire broke out at 1:40 pm at the site. The reason for the outbreak is not ascertained yet. Apart from a fireman of Oil and Natural Gas Commission (ONGC) who sustained minor injury, no one else has been injured,” mentioned Jayant Bormudoi, senior supervisor (company communication) of OIL.

“The experts were not present at the site when the fire broke out. They were at meetings in OIL office in Duliajan. There is no immediate threat to residents of the area who have already been shifted beyond a radius of 1.5 km from the well,” Bormudoi added.

Following the blowout almost 2,000 folks residing close to the properly had been shifted to 4 reduction camps.

Meanwhile, native residents have began protesting near the blowout web site blaming OIL for failing to manage the catastrophe for 2 weeks. OIL has requested the state authorities to manage the scenario in order that specialists and officers can attain the positioning to manage the hearth and blowout.

The Baghjan properly suffered the blowout on May 27 whereas work was underway to provide fuel from a brand new oil and fuel bearing reservoir at a depth of three,729 metres.