Crews battle large gas-well fire in Greene Co.; 1 missing

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Permalink Reply by Philip Brutz on February 18, 2014 at 12:47am

Not just pizza.

Chevron offers grants to Fayette, Washington County fire departments

Read more: http://triblive.com/news/washington/5335818-74/vfd-fire-1000#ixzz2t... 

By Joe Napsha 

Published: Saturday, Feb. 15, 2014, 7:19 p.m.

Twenty-seven fire departments in Fayette and Washington counties will split almost $50,000 that Chevron U.S.A. Inc. is donating to tri-state fire companies as part of the energy firm's initiative to help fire companies with Chevron gas wells operating within their coverage areas.

Twenty fire departments in Fayette County will share $39,500, with 12 of them receiving grants of $1,000, while others will receive $2,500 or $5,000.

The Tower Hill Fire Department in Luzerne Township was awarded $7,500, the largest grant in the county. A Tower Hill fire company spokesman could not be reached for comment.

Perry Township fire Chief Barry Lynch, whose department will receive $2,500, said the department has not decided how it will spend the money.

The Washington Township Fire Department was awarded $2,500. Chief David Kimball could not be reached for comment.

The Smock Fire Department was awarded $7,500.

Seven fire departments from Washington County will split $10,000.

Chevron awarded the departments $2,500 for each well that the corporation drilled into the Marcellus shale reserves within their service territory this year. Chevron said it will donate $1,000 to the volunteer fire departments with existing Chevron well pads in their service area. Fire departments that serve Chevron office facilities each will receive $2,500.

The money is part of Chevron's $240,000 donation to 90 volunteer fire departments and nine hazardous materials teams in Western Pennsylvania, Ohio and West Virginia where Chevron operates. The company's 2013 donation is $7,500 more than the 2012 donation.

Hazardous materials teams in Fayette, Washington and Westmoreland counties will each receive $9,500.

Chevron did not tell the local fire departments how they must spend the money, said Mikal Zimmerman, policy, government and public affairs representative for the company at its office in Smithfield, Fayette County.

The Fayette County Hazardous Materials Response Team will use its money for training and equipment, said Roy Shipley Jr., director of the Fayette County Emergency Management Agency.

Westmoreland County Hazardous Materials Response Team will spend the money on equipment used for emergencies at natural gas well sites, said Daniel A. Stevens, a spokesman for the Westmoreland County Department of Public Safety. The money might be spent on calibration equipment for gas meters, Stevens said.

“Keeping the community safe is why we volunteer as firefighters, and we are pleased that Chevron shares our same commitment,” Stevens said.

In addition to the donations to fire departments, Chevron has partnered with Wild Well Control Inc. to provide training for emergency responders that will prepare them for potential emergencies at well sites. Wild Well handles firefighting, well control and related engineering services for the oil and gas industry.

“The hazmat teams and volunteer fire departments in our operating areas are indispensable to the health and safety of their communities,” said Trip Oliver, manager of public affairs for Chevron's Appalachian/Michigan Strategic Business Unit.



Read more: http://triblive.com/news/washington/5335818-74/vfd-fire-1000#ixzz2t... 
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Permalink Reply by Philip Brutz on February 28, 2014 at 6:14am

http://www.chem.info/blogs/2014/02/chevrons-pizza-apology-blunder-g...

Chevron's Pizza Apology Blunder Goes Viral

Fri, 02/28/2014 - 7:29am
Nikita Ernst, Associate Editor

As many of you may know, a couple of weeks ago on February 11th, an explosion occurred and fire broke out on Chevron Appalachia's Lanco 7H fracking well pad in Bobtown, Pennsylvania. No drilling was taking place at the time, as the wells were not yet ready for production, but it was an intense fire and took five days to get under control. Chevron officials were on the scene immediately, working with the local fire and police departments as well as Wild Well Control all week long, continually monitoring the air, surrounding water and noise in the area that could pose any risk to the residents. Although the fire caused no threat to residents, one worker was injured and, unfortunately, another died in the incident. 

Chevron's attempt to apologize to Bobtown for the incident only added fuel to the flames. On the 16th, officials from the Chevron Community Outreach Team distributed apology letters accompanied by coupons for a large free pizza and two liter bottle of soda. The outrage could be seen on Twitter and many locals were more than happy to answer calls from reporters, sharing their disgust that a billion dollar company could only spare $12 each on the 100 affected residents. Anti-frackers trolling the web also took the opportunity to throw themselves into the fray, commenting constantly on the many hazards of fracking in general and so close to a populated area. 

While the pizza approach may not have been best, considering it seems to have done as much public relations damage as good in Bobtown, it's hard to know what the right apology would be in this situation, or if there is one at all. No one wants to think of this kind of accident as "normal" but in the grand scheme of oil and gas production, these kinds of incidents do happen. The fire posed no threat to the town and its residents and there is no cause for concern about the gas burning and venting off the wells. Obviously, an apology and gratitude is owed to the families of the injured and killed - but what is owed to the otherwise unaffected residents nearby? Would a simple issued apology have sufficed? A promise to increase their focus on safety? Those attempts probably would have provoked similar scorn from anyone (within the community or from the outside) who doesn't approve of fracking or the perceived lack of care companies like Chevron show for the communities near their wells. Chevron can promise all the safety procedures in the world, but they can never guarantee that something like this is never going to happen. It's impossible to appease a person or group already predisposed to dislike what you are doing on a good day, much less when a tragic event occurs.

In this day and age, with the threat of a crisis going viral looming over the head of every company, perhaps something so tweet-able as apology pizza wasn't the best option. But what most fail to mention as they rail against fracking and Chevron is that the gift certificates were purchased from a new, local business1 - the kinds of business made possible by a large company - like Chevron - entering a rural area like this one. While it is a bit too long and winding of a path to assume that the Chevron PR department meant it this way, the symbolism of this choice should not be lost on anyone considering whether the risks of having a well in your own backyard are worth it

Permalink Reply by Philip Brutz on February 17, 2014 at 1:17pm

http://www.chevron.com/news/mediaresources/updates.news

Update No. 8: Pennsylvania Incident

Feb. 17, 2014, 4:55 p.m. EST – For clarification regarding the timeline associated with the Lanco Well Site Fire – the initial well, 7H, began burning the morning of February 11. An adjacent well on the pad, 6H, began burning on February 14, after sustaining damage from the heat of the fire from the initial well. The two wells are no longer burning as of 3PM Saturday. 

It is premature to speculate on what caused the flames to go out. However, we do know at this time the volume of natural gas is lower than what it had been previously.

Due to the flames going out, Wild Well Control was able to access the well pad to perform an assessment of the wellhead equipment on Sunday. The information gathered allows our planning engineers to have the latest and most accurate information readily available to assist with their intervention. Wild Well Control is also mobilizing blowout prevention equipment, such as capping stacks, to seal the wells, which is standard equipment for these types of situations.

Before the well intervention equipment work can commence, a crane that was burned as a result of the fire must be removed from the site. The crane, that is approximately 30 feet from the well head, required special equipment to be brought in to assist with its removal.

Water tanks have been moved onto the Lanco well pad to prepare for well intervention work and fire prevention and suppression, if necessary. We are currently connecting all of the tanks together and filling them with fresh water. We have mobilized a fleet of tanks that hold 500 barrels of water each, with an approximate capacity of 21,000 gallons per tank. The purpose of these tanks is to provide enough water to cool the area and minimize the potential for re-ignition.

We are staging additional response equipment at nearby locations, including the Greene County Fairgrounds.

On Sunday, Chevron met with DEP representatives at the Incident Command Center in Moon Township for a Technical Briefing on the well intervention plan. Chevron continues to work cooperatively with local, state and federal agencies and emergency response organizations. We appreciate their ongoing support to this incident.

A weather station is in place on site to provide accurate, current on-site weather conditions for monitoring by the Incident Command Center to assist with operations planning.

We are dedicating considerable resources to maintaining and clearing the roads due to weather conditions to help assist personnel traveling to the site and equipment being delivered.

Incident command and response teams continue to work 24 hours a day to assess and respond to the incident and to help protect the safety of all involved in responding to this incident.

Permalink Reply by Philip Brutz on February 18, 2014 at 5:59am

Missing worker identified in Greene County gas well explosion

By Molly Born / Pittsburgh Post-GazetteFebruary 18, 2014 9:14 AM



Read more: http://www.post-gazette.com/local/south/2014/02/18/Missing-worker-i...

A northwestern Pennsylvania newspaper has identified a worker missing since last week's gas well explosion and fire in Dunkard, Greene County.

The Times Observer of Warren reported that friends held a candlelight vigil Thursday for Ian McKee, 27, originally from Warren but whose latest address is in Morgantown, W.Va.

Mr. McKee, an employee of Cameron International, a contractor to Chevron, was onsite when the gas well near Bobtown exploded last Tuesday morning, one of his friends told the Times Observer . Officials at a press conference Monday in Morgantown said they continued to search for the man, who is feared to be dead and has not been identified by the company

"This is an extremely difficult time for our Chevron family and those who work for Cameron Surface Systems," Chevron spokesman Trip Oliver said Monday. "Our thoughts and prayers go out to [the missing employee's] family and friends."

Mr. Oliver said Monday if the missing employee is confirmed to have died in the explosion, it would be the first Marcellus operations-related fatality for Chevron.

A spokeswoman for Chevron said the company "cannot comment or speculate on the status or identity of our unaccounted for colleague" because of the ongoing Pennsylvania State Police investigation. She referred all questions to them.

The Times Observer said Mr. McKee graduated from Warren Area High School in 2004, and was living in Morgantown, W.Va., with his girlfriend, Danielle Desposito, according to friend Melissa Almendinger of Warren.

Melissa Almendinger, of Warren, could not be reached for comment, but told the Times Observer that she organized the vigil for "my best friend and the godfather of my son."

She told the paper that Mr. McKee's mother, stepfather and sister still live in Warren.

Ms. Almendinger said she has been in continuous contact with Ms. Desposito, who updates her on information from Chevron, including a phone call during the vigil.



Read more: http://www.post-gazette.com/local/south/2014/02/18/Missing-worker-i...

Permalink Reply by Philip Brutz on February 19, 2014 at 2:18am

http://www.chevron.com/news/mediaresources/updates.news?utm_campaig...

Frequently Asked Questions: Pennsylvania Incident

What are you doing to put out the fire and ensure the safety of the community?:
The situation at the Lanco well site in Pennsylvania remains serious and teams are working around the clock to safely approach and shut in the well.  There has been considerable construction activity adjacent to the site, resulting in increased traffic and congestion in the area. 

What are you doing to help those in the community affected by this incident?:
Recognizing that our neighbors have been affected by these activities, we are out in the community every day listening to and addressing concerns. We are working with community leaders to identify local needs and we will continue our outreach in the community.

What are you doing to find the missing individual?:
Our thoughts remain with the family and friends of our missing colleague. We are working as quickly and safely as possible to control the well, and we will then turn the site over to the State Police to continue their investigation as soon as it is safe to do so.

Please find more detailed information below.

Update No. 9: Pennsylvania Incident

Feb. 18, 2014, 7:30 p.m. EST – At this time, we cannot comment or speculate on the status or identity of the missing worker. This continues to be the subject of an ongoing Pennsylvania State Police investigation, and out of respect for their jurisdiction and for the family, all questions regarding the missing person will be handled by the State Police.  We are working as quickly and safely as possible to control the well, and we will turn the site over to the State Police to continue their investigation as soon as it is safe to do so. 

The situation at the Lanco well site in Pennsylvania remains serious and teams are working around the clock to safely approach and shut in the well. It remains premature to speculate on the cause of the fire or what recently caused the flames at the well to go out.

Most necessary work has been completed regarding preparation for the damaged crane removal.  Weather permitting, the plan is for the crane to be removed Wednesday.

The DEP has issued Chevron a permit to pipe 1.15 million gallons of water per day via a flexible line from Dunkard Creek during operations. This water will be used to cool the area and minimize the potential for re-ignition during response efforts. 

Firefighting equipment assembly and testing continues. As an additional firefighting precaution, a heat shield was installed between wells 7H and 8H today.

As part of our comprehensive response to the incident, we have communicated with area residents to answer their questions and capture their concerns. Chevron’s primary objectives remain to protect the safety of employees, contractors and the surrounding community, prevent escalation and secure the source.

We are dedicating considerable resources to maintaining and clearing the roads due to weather conditions to help assist personnel traveling to the site and equipment being delivered.

Chevron continues to work cooperatively with local, state and federal agencies and emergency response organizations. We appreciate their ongoing support to this incident.

Permalink Reply by DONNA M SELLERS on February 19, 2014 at 5:11am

My son does this same kind of work but for a different company has for almost 8 yrs. now. My heart felt prayers to the family and to all the roughnecks out there. 

Permalink Reply by Philip Brutz on February 19, 2014 at 3:22pm

http://www.chevron.com/news/mediaresources/updates.news?utm_campaig...

Update No. 10: Pennsylvania Incident

Feb. 19, 2014, 8:55 p.m. EST – It is with heartfelt sadness that we learned today from the Pennsylvania State Police that investigators from their forensic services unit located remains at the Lanco well pad site. Our thoughts go out to the family, friends and co-workers of our missing colleague, Ian McKee.

We value our employees and contractors as our greatest asset and work extremely hard every day to prevent incidents like this. We are committed to fully understanding what happened and are determined to prevent this from happening again. 

We are focused on ensuring the safety of all workers on site as they continue to respond to this incident.

Any questions regarding Mr. McKee should be directed to the Pennsylvania State Police or Cameron International.

Permalink Reply by Philip Brutz on February 20, 2014 at 12:44pm

http://www.chevron.com/news/mediaresources/updates.news?utm_campaig...|pcrid|31632735769|pkw|chevron%20gas%20well%20fire|pmt|e

Update No. 11: Pennsylvania Incident

Feb. 20, 2014, 3:17 p.m. EST

Chevron and Wild Well Control personnel are working collaboratively to design and execute our well intervention plan to control the wells on the Lanco pad.

We were successful in installing the diversion tube on Wednesday, a device that directs gas away from the well head area allowing Chevron and Wild Well Control personnel access to safely access the well head. The plan at this time is to cap 7H, then 6H, and to then run diagnostics on 8H to determine the best path forward.

The next step of the process includes cutting and unbolting part of the upper portion of the well head so that the blowout prevention equipment [or capping stack] has a clear connection point. We will utilize specialized equipment that creates a high powered stream of water and sand to cut through the upper assembly of the well head. Weather permitting; this work is planned to begin this weekend and could last several days.

Due to the pressure needed to pump the water and sand in a jet like fashion, this process has the potential to be loud.  Abrasive water-jet cutting is the safest cutting method in potentially flammable atmospheres because it is self-cooling and provides no ignition source.

Part of the plan might involve flaring of the gas. We ask residents not to be alarmed if this occurs as this is expected under these conditions.

These well intervention efforts involve many steps and have to be executed in a precise, controlled, methodical manner. We are working to be efficient in our efforts to minimize the duration however, the safety of the workers and operations will determine the appropriate pace.

Any questions regarding Mr. McKee should be directed to the Pennsylvania State Police or Cameron International.

Permalink Reply by Philip Brutz on February 21, 2014 at 12:25pm

Chevron halted drilling on all of its Pennsylvania gas wells following explosion

February 21, 2014 4:53 PM

By Molly Born and Sean D. Hamill / Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Chevron has shut down gas wells in Pennsylvania that it was still drilling or working to put into production following the deadly explosion and fire on a well pad last week in Greene County, a state environmental official said today.

Scott Perry, a Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection deputy secretary, said work on seven well pads with wells that have been fracked and are awaiting production, or have not yet been fracked, has been suspended since the Feb. 11 blast in Dunkard.

Fracking is a part of the drilling process that involves shooting millions of gallons of water, sand and chemicals into the well hole to fracture the shale and allow the gas to escape.

Mr. Perry said the DEP asked Chevron to shut down the wells, but the company had already done so, last week. State environmental inspectors are visiting the sites, and Chevron is inspecting all of its wells statewide, he said.

The wells in Dunkard continued to leak today, Mr. Perry said, but that presents no danger to the community or environment. Crews don't expect to cap the two well heads until the middle of next week.

"Obviously, the most critical thing is that this be done safely," he said.

It's still unclear what caused the explosion that killed one contractor and injured another, sparking a fire that burned out of control for five days. Officials will focus their investigation on a bolt -- used to support production tubing that workers were going to run into the well -- that appears to have been ejected from the well head.

"It's a rare event, obviously, but we need to make sure it cannot reoccur," Mr. Perry said.

State police investigators on Wednesday recovered the remains of who they believe to be Ian McKee, 27, a field service technician for Cameron International who was working on the site. Mr. McKee was originally from Warren, but lived in Morgantown, W.Va.

Just before the blast, workers on site said they heard a noise coming from the well, and at least two people -- Mr. McKee and another Cameron contractor -- "approached the well when it lost its integrity," Mr. Perry said.

Molly Born: mborn@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1944. Sean D. Hamill: shamill@post-gazette.com or 412-263-2579.



Read more: http://www.post-gazette.com/local/marcellusshale/2014/02/21/Chevron...

Permalink Reply by DONNA M SELLERS on February 22, 2014 at 11:34am

I WAS SPEAKING WITH MY SON EARLIER TODAY(HE WORKS ON WELLS HAS FOR 8 YRS NOW) HE ALSO KNOWS SOME OF THE CREW ON THIS WELL. I TOLD HIM AND MY HUSBAND THAT IT MAY HAVE BEEN A BOLT. FIRST MY HUSBAND SAID THE PLANT HE WORKS FOR HAS BEEN HAVING THAT TROUBLE WITH THE BOLTS ETC THAT ARE FROM CHINA. THEY CUT CORNERS AND DONT TEMPER THEM LIKE THEY SHOULD MIX IN WEAKER METALS. THEN MY SON SAID FOR THE LAST YEAR OR SO THE COMPANY HE WORKS FOR  MADE THE HANDS GO THROUGH ALL THERE STUFF AND GET RID OF ANYTHING FROM CHINA...MAYBE ONE DAY ARE STEEL MILLS WILL MAKE A COME BACK............

Permalink Reply by Philip Brutz on February 22, 2014 at 3:21pm

http://www.chevron.com/news/mediaresources/updates.news

Update No. 12: Pennsylvania Incident

Feb. 22, 2014, 12:30 p.m. EST - Wild Well Control (WWC) is completing preparations to safely secure the wells. They have performed diagnostics to test the integrity of existing lower well head sections of the 7H and 6H wells. The tests were positive, which means the new capping stack can be bolted securely to the existing lower section.

 

The next step will be for WWC to cut the well heads and seal the wells with a capping stack beginning with the 7H well. The cutting operation on the upper portion of the well head will allow the capping stacks to have clear connection points. To do this, WWC will use specialized equipment that creates a high-powered stream of water and sand to cut through the upper assembly of the wellheads.

 

WWC will connect the new capping stacks to the lower section of the wellheads while the wells are flowing. This is a critical step in the operation in the effort to secure the well.

 

The cutting and capping operations are planned to occur during daylight hours because of the potential noise impact, but it is possible that operations may continue into the night. We expect cutting and capping to last one day for each well.

 

The section of the 7H wellhead where the leak occurred will be transported offsite for further analysis by an independent third party as part of the ongoing root-cause investigation.

 

Following the capping of the 7H and 6H wells, WWC will assess the integrity of the 8H well and complete any necessary repairs to secure the well head equipment. This work should be completed in one day.  Once this occurs, the well head equipment of all three wells on the Lanco “A” pad will be secured and all gas flow will be stopped.

 

WWC will install plugs as protective barriers approximately 8,000 feet below the surface in all three wells to prevent gas pressure from reaching the well head. This down-hole intervention involves several steps and should take approximately four days per well to complete.

 

Portions of these processes may involve flaring of gas.

 

These well intervention efforts involve many steps and will be executed in a precise, controlled, and methodical manner. We are striving to be efficient in our efforts to minimize the duration of the operations, however, the safety of the workers and operations will determine the appropriate pace.

 

Wild Well Control has a 38-year history of providing well control and emergency response, providing firefighting, well control, engineering and training services to the oil and gas industry worldwide. Based in Houston, Wild Well is the primary responder to more than 80 percent of all well incidents globally. WWC employs more than 350 staff in 18 locations worldwide serving independent, multi-national and state-owned oil and gas companies who operate wells onshore, in inland waters, offshore and in deep-water locations.

 

Permalink Reply by Philip Brutz on February 23, 2014 at 2:02pm

http://www.chevron.com/news/mediaresources/updates.news?utm_campaig...

Update No. 13: Pennsylvania Incident

Feb. 23, 2014, 3:30 p.m. EST – Today at 2:25 pm, Wild Well Control successfully capped Lanco well 7H, stopping gas flow from the well.

The next step of the process is for WWC to conduct similar procedures on well 6H. This is expected to occur in the next few days. After that, WWC will assess the integrity of the 8H well and complete any necessary repairs to secure the well. Part of the plan might involve flaring of the gas.

The continuing well intervention efforts involve many steps and have to be executed in a precise, controlled, methodical manner. We are working to be efficient in our efforts to minimize the duration however, the safety of the workers and operations will determine the appropriate pace.

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