GUWAHATI: Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal on Thursday ordered a probe to ascertain the causes for the fire at an oil well in Tinsukia district. The probe will be conducted by Additional Chief Secretary Maninder Singh, who was given 15 days to submit a report.
The blaze has claimed the lives of Durlav Gogoi and Tikheswar Gohain, both firefighters of Oil India Limited (OIL). The “blowout” or uncontrolled emission of natural gas that led to the inferno, had occurred on May 27.
On Thursday, the OIL said the fire was contained to the well.
“No flash fire was reported from nearby areas. In order to arrest any untoward incidents of flash fire, fire tenders have been kept ready at the site.”
Preparation of a roadmap for oil well control by an expert team from Singapore along with an ONGC team was under way, it said.
Meanwhile, the blowout and resultant fire caused an uncertainty on the OIL’s plans to drill for hydrocarbon deposits at seven locations in Tinsukia and Dibrugarh districts.
In May, the OIL had announced it received environmental clearance for drilling and testing.
The proposed operations include horizontal drilling at a depth of 3.5 km under the Dibru-Saikhowa National Park, to be done from a point beyond its boundary.