The oil well fires in Assam have resulted in the evacuation of at least 6,000 people in Baghjan, Tinsukia.
Guwahati:
About 45 days after a damaged gas well exploded in Baghjan, Assam, about 500 kilometers from Guwahati, state-owned Oil India Limited (OIL) said it was confident to start “main work “to control the fire in the coming days. .
OIL’s gas well No. 5 at Baghjan Tinsukia, near the Dibru Saikhowa wildlife sanctuary, caught fire on June 9, killing two of OIL’s firefighters at the site. All work in progress to extinguish the fire was suspended approximately 2 weeks ago due to the flood water flooding the site and submerging the pumps installed to extinguish the fire.
In a short video released to the media, OIL spokesperson Tridiv Hazarika said that “the most important obstacle” had been overcome.
“All the debris from the reconditioning platforms, the most important obstacle in the fight against fire, has been removed from the well base and all the small objects are now taken away. With that done, we will be able to begin main fire control work within the next 2-3 days, “said Mr. Hazarika.
The platforms have been leased to John Energy Ltd., based in Gujarat.
Hazarika said, “Firefighting work has been halted for the past two days due to bad weather and flooding in and around the well site caused by incessant rain. Work resumed on Tuesday.”
An environmental impact assessment is underway and a damage assessment investigation has found 1,383 families affected by the fire.
The closure of four gas wells, eight oil wells in Baghjan and one well in Dhakuwal due to residents’ protests after the fire resulted in a cumulative loss of 3,016 metric tonnes of crude oil and 10.07 million standard cubic meters of natural gas.
(This story has not been edited by GalacticGaming staff and is automatically generated from a syndicated feed.)
