Assam’s Gas Well Catches Fire – Burning Issues

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“We cannot say how and why it happened,” said TridivHazarika, OIL spokesperson.
“It is not unexpected for a blowout to catch fire since the gases which escape are highly inflammable.”

HOW BIG IS THE FIRE?

“It is a big fire but it is only around the plinth area of the well,” Bhaskar Pegu, DC Tinsukia district.
“The fire has not spread to water bodies around the well.”
While locals have said many houses have burnt, authorities said the fire has not spread.
“The fire is slowly spreading to the grasslands. Many houses nearby have been burnt. People from this area were evacuated but there has been damage to property.”
People from surrounding villages, who had not been evacuated earlier, left their homes when they saw the well catch fire.

The hot weather could have played a role in the fire.
There are a lot of pipes on top of the well, and gas is flowing constantly at a high velocity —even the slightest friction can set it on fire.
All these days, it was raining so that helped.
But it was really hot yesterday, so it could be because of that.