Emergency response at HWN Energy site lifted
Emergency response at HWN Energy Ltd. has been lifted following a "well control incident" at a company in Alberta last week.
The company confirmed last week that a fire at a natural gas well site north of Cochrane had been extinguished following an explosion that injured five contractor personnel.
The incident, which occurred on Monday, Sept. 30.
The five workers were transported to the hospital, with Alberta Health Services confirming three suffered life-threatening injuries while two sustained non-life-threatening injuries.
In a press release issued Tuesday, the company said that emergency response was lifted at 7:30 PM MST on Oct. 6, 2024.
The Alberta Energy Regulator (AER) and Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) “released the site back to HWN as of approximately 12:00 PM MST on October 7th, 2024,” said the company.
“Additional repairs and remediation efforts will continue on the site in the near-term,” it added.
Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) Cpl. Gina Slaney said that the five workers, members of a contracting crew drilling on a lease site north of Cochrane, hit a gas pocket that triggered a large explosion, according to the St. Albert Gazette.
HWN also expressed its sympathies to the families and friends of the workers who were hurt in the incident.
“Our thoughts remain with the five injured contractor personnel and their families. Out of respect for their privacy, HWN will not be making any comment on their condition,” said HWN.
One of the five people hospitalized is still in ICU, according to the report from the St. Albert Gazette.
The workers, Jon McIntosh was previously sedated and intubated with 2nd and 3rd degree burns to many places on his body from the accident, according to the report.
The Alberta Energy Regulator (AER) is actively overseeing HWN Energy's response to the incident. Meanwhile, OHS)is also investigating the explosion and subsequent fire.
