Company confirms “well control incident” in Rocky View County and evacuates personnel – DiscoverAirdrie.com

In a letter from HWN Energy Ltd. In a statement released, the company confirmed a “well control incident” that occurred eight kilometers north of Cochrane at 2pm yesterday.

“The safety of our employees, contractors and the local community is our top priority and we are actively working to manage the situation…The exact cause of the incident is not yet known; However, emergency services, government officials and trained employees are not yet known. “Emergency teams were immediately activated,” it said in a written statement on the company’s website.

The company noted that it has mobilized industry experts and specialized equipment to safely and timely restore control of the well while protecting the public and the environment.

“Five contractor employees were injured in the incident, all of whom were taken to local hospitals for evaluation and treatment. As a precautionary measure, we have evacuated non-essential personnel from the immediate area and established a containment zone around the site. We are in close communication with the local authorities and all necessary regulatory authorities have been informed.”

The company added that it understands the local community's concerns and would like to reassure the public that it is “taking all possible measures to effectively manage this incident.”

“There is currently no immediate danger to residents and air quality monitoring is being carried out as a precautionary measure. Our teams are closely monitoring the situation and we aim to provide regular updates as more information becomes available. The safety of our employees, the community and the environment remain our top priority in this response effort.”

This morning, the Alberta Energy Regulator (AER) also commented on the incident northwest of Airdrie.

According to an emailed statement from the AER, officials said the organization's top priority in the event of an incident is to ensure that companies take quick and effective action to protect public safety and the environment.

“We are currently monitoring HWN Energy’s response to a sweet gas release and fire approximately eight kilometers north of Cochrane. Roadblocks have been established to protect the public and facilitate ongoing emergency operations. “AER staff are on site to assess the situation and evaluate ongoing response efforts,” the AER stated.

According to HWN Energy's website, the company is “an oil and natural gas exploration and production company with operations focused in central and northern Alberta.”

“We are actively growing, both through the development of our current asset base and through the potential acquisition of additional properties in the Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin. Hawthorne Energy LLC operates in Canada through our wholly owned subsidiary HWN Energy, Ltd. employed.”

AER also added that they remain present on site and will continue to communicate with HWN to ensure public safety and environmental protection are maintained and all legal requirements are met.

“Emergency response teams and local authorities, including occupational health and safety (OHS) teams, are on site,” the AER concluded.

In an emailed statement, provincial officials were only able to provide limited information as OHS is actively investigating the incident.

“It is always tragic when workers are injured or die at work. Our government's goal is for all workers to return home safely after each day of work. OHS is investigating an explosion at an oil and gas site near Cochrane that occurred on September 30. “As this is an ongoing investigation, no further information is being provided by OHS at this time,” the statement said.

Rocky View County officials noted late Monday evening that they had been told the fire was under control, although crews would monitor the situation overnight.

Sign up to get the latest local headlines delivered straight to your inbox every afternoon.

Send your news tips, story ideas, images and videos to [email protected]. You can also send us a message and follow us on Twitter: @AIR1061FM.

DiscoverAirdrie encourages you to get your news directly from your trusted source by bookmarking this page and downloading the DiscoverAirdrie app.