Blazing fire at oil well in Indonesia kills 15 people leaving 40 injured

Aceh, April 25: Struggling to contain the blaze at an oil well in the northwestern province of Aceh, almost 10 firemen were killed leaving 40 others injured.

 

The country's disaster agency today said, the fire may have been caused by pipe welding at the site. The blaze also torched some houses. Flames towered over houses and trees as firefighters hosed down the area while villagers watched, in pictures posted on social media by Sutopo Purwo Nugroho, Indonesia’s disaster mitigation agency.

The fire broke out in the east Aceh district in the early hours of Wednesday, after a well of depth 250 meters (820 ft) overflowed and residents gathered to collect the oil, the agency added.

Dozens of people were being rushed to hospital in the provincial capital of Banda Aceh, it said, adding that state oil firm Pertamina was providing equipment to help control the fire.

The head of police in east Aceh said the oil well might have been drilled illegally and the fire might have been started when someone was smoking a cigarette.

Such illegal drilling is common in Aceh, where Pertamina operates an oil field.