Red Adair

Paul Neal "Red" Adair (June 18, 1915 – August 7, 2004) was a renowned American oil field firefighter. He became world famous as an innovator in the highly specialized and extremely hazardous profession of extinguishing and capping blazing, erupting oil wells, both land-based and offshore.

Fire at the Wellhead

Fire requires fuel, heat, and oxygen to burn (the fire triangle principle): In fighting a fire at a wellhead (the portion of the well at and just above the ground's surface), typically high explosives such as dynamite are used to 'snuff' the flame first. Doing so removes the 'heat' but the 'fuel' (the natural gas or oil) is still present, often a huge 'fountain' of oil surrounds the work area, showering fuel upon the working crew.

Related Topics:
Fire triangle - Wellhead - High explosive - Dynamite

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After snuffing, the wellhead must be 'capped' to stop the flow of fuel. During this time, the fuel and oxygen required to create another inferno is present in copious amounts. At this perilous stage, one small spark (perhaps from a steel or iron tool striking a stone) or other heat source might re-ignite the fuel.

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To prevent re-ignition, brass or bronze tools, which do not strike sparks, or paraffin coated tools are used during the capping process. Meticulous care is used to avoid heat and sparks, or any other ignition source. The explosive re-ignition of a wellhead may take the form of an extremely powerful explosion, possibly even worse than the original 'blowout'.

Related Topics:
Brass - Bronze - Paraffin

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Due to recent advances in technology as well as enviromental concerns, many wells today are capped while they burn. The use of high powered water sprays and Purple K dry chemical (a potassium bicarbonate mixture) are used to extinguish the wells.

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