Canadian Equipment Reaches Assam as Baghjan Oil Field Fire Rages

The fire started from a blowout on 27 May 2020.

Assam oil well fire engulfs nearby villages. Image used for representation.

(Photo: PTI)

In Tinsukia district of Assam, the Baghjan oil well fire has been raging for the past 5 months. A “special machinery” has been brought in from Canada after Oil India Limited (OIL) and Oil and National Gas Corporation Limited (ONGC) failed to effectively respond, reported ANI on Thursday, 5 November.

The latest attempt to extinguish the fire comes from the oil company that has adopted a process called “snubbing” to contain the fire from spreading, NDTV reported. Snubbing is a heavy oil well intervention process that is used to put out the fire.

For this purpose, a snubbing technique unit has been brought in from Canada.

Tridiv Hazarika, OIL’s spokesperson, said:

“Overall impact of the blowout has decreased to a great extent. We’ll use a new technique – snubbing technique unit. It is being brought from Canada’s Alberta. The work will be done by experts, seven experts are here.”

According to experts, the fire could be controlled by November.

What Happened?

On 27 May, in an event termed as a ‘blowout’, oil and natural gas started leaking from the Baghjan oil field in Assam’s Tinsukia district. A fire broke out in the next two weeks, displacing families and wreaking havoc.

In the past, there have been many attempts to control the fire in Assam. Experts from a Singapore-based disaster control group have intervened and a ‘killing fluid’ has been injected into the well. These attempts yielded no results, making this the longest fire in India.

(With inputs from NDTV and ANI)