NRC # 865435 Partin No. 5 Oil Well Fire, Oliver Springs, Tenn.
At approximately 6:30 am, Wednesday, March 19th, the Partin No. 5 Oil Well caught fire during drilling operations northwest of Oliver Springs, Tenn. Apparently, a large zone of natural gas was hit and the blow out preventer failed resulting in a substantial fire and release of approximately 2000 barrels of crude oil to a secondary retention pond. According to TDEC a small amount of crude oil found its way to an unnamed tributary of Indian Creek. Local fire and hazmat arrived on scene, placed boom at several locations along the creek, and evacuated a few homes in the vicinity of the well. The responsible party, Walden Resources has hired Wild Well Services of Houston,Texas to assess and extinguish the fire at the well head.
The OSC continues to work within a unified command structure with the local EMA coordinator, TDEC and TEMA. EPA, with START contractor support, will conduct air monitoring and site oversight as needed throughout the response. Local media interest was high on Wednesday and is being provided periodic updates from Public Information Officers from TDEC and TEMA.
Profile Update: April 11th, 2008
On March 19th, EPA ERRB responded to an oil well fire in Oliver Springs Tenn. The RP, Walden Resources hired Wild Well Services from Houston, Texas to put out the well fire and cap the well. After mobing necessary personnel and equipment, the fire was extinguished and the well was successfully capped on Tuesday March 25th. EPA and START contractors conducted air monitoring throughout the response effort and conducted daily public meetings to keep the local residents aprised of the response effort. During the effort on March 25th however, the RP was found to be dumping oil contaminated water from the retention ponds onto a pasture approximately 3/4 mile from the well site. On Wednesday, March 26th, the OSC informed the RP that EPA would be taking over the clean up under a Federal Assumption Notice.
On April 11th, EPA subcontracted an oil and gas specialist, Mick Reed from Greystar Pipeline as a consultant for the remainder of the project. Mr. Reed has 32 years of experience in oil and gas production and safety. He will provide technical support for all operations with regard to the well head, production support and oversee all safety aspects of placing the well into production.
Perry Gaughan, OSC, cell (404) 909-2930
