An official with Rocky View County Fire Services says five people were taken to hospital after an oil well fire northwest of Calgary on Monday afternoon.
The fire started at about 2 p.m. in the area of Highway 567 and Range Road 40, north of Cochrane.
Fire officials with the county said five ambulances were called.
A spokesperson with Alberta Health Services EMS said five adults were taken to hospital: three with life-threatening injuries and two with non-life-threatening injuries.
On Monday night, HWN Energy Ltd. issued a statement about what it called a “well-control incident.”
The company said the exact cause of the incident has yet to be determined.
Get breaking National news
“We have mobilized industry experts and specialized equipment to restore control of the well in a safe and timely manner, while concurrently protecting the public and environment,” HWN Energy said. “As a precautionary measure, we have evacuated non-essential personnel from the immediate area and have established an exclusion zone around the site.
“At this time, there is no immediate threat to nearby residents, and air quality monitoring is being conducted as a precaution.”
Cpl. Gina Slaney with the RCMP said it is believed a crew that was drilling in the area hit a gas pocket which started the fire. She said the fire is expected to burn for days.
As of 1:15 p.m. Tuesday, the well was still actively burning, according to HWN Energy.
A spokesperson for the Alberta Energy Regulator said that the incident occurred at a sweet gas well and that the organization is monitoring the company’s response.
Slaney added that Occupational Health and Safety is investigating.
Firefighters from Springbank and Bearspaw were at the scene.
Rocky View County Fire Services said a fire control specialist team was being put together.
Global News has reached out to fire officials for an update on the situation Tuesday morning.
–with files from Global News’ Phil Heidenreich and The Canadian Press’ Rob Drinkwater
Comments