Boots & Coots tames Iraq’s oil well fires during war William Markus, Boots & Coots Safety Engi- extinguishing the burning oil wells. Ini- Soon after the Iraq invasion of Kuwait in neer tially, Coalition Forces infantry and the 1991, retreating Iraqi troops placed Kuwait Army secured a route in and out explosives on oil wells. Ultimately, Iraqi THE WAR IN Iraq commenced on of the south oil fields to allow B&C fire forces blew up more than 700 oil wells. March 20, 2003. In keeping with his past pumps and heavy equipment to pass actions in Kuwait during the Gulf War in safely. B&C blowout specialists assisted in 1991, Saddam Hussein sabotaged a extinguishing wells in the Burgan fields. number of the Iraqi oil wells in the south Mobilization of the firefighting equip- The last oil well blowout in Kuwait was Rumalia oil fields. ment, personnel, and heavy equipment capped on November 8, 1991 in Northern was simply the first of many challenges Kuwait, some 8 ½ months after the con- Boots & Coots was contacted to assist that awaited Boots & Coots. trol work began. the military in controlling these wells at an unprecedented point in time, while There were some 28 firefighting teams the war was in full swing. involved from the United Subsequently, Boots & States, Canada, Kuwait, Coots (B&C) aided in Iran, Hungary, Rumania, extinguishing four wells, Russia, and China. More which were on fire, and in than 70% of the blowouts safely controlling an addi- were controlled by teams tional five wells in the from the United States. first 45 days of the Iraqi The firefighters called the war. effort “Operation Desert Hell.” CONDITIONS Having experienced Hus- Coalition forces advanced sein’s massive destruc- into Iraq to attack war tion of oil wells first hand, zones soon after the war B&C personnel were well began. Meanwhile, con- aware of the methods of voys mobilized daily along destruction and familiar the route from Kuwait city with the scene of burning to the south Rumalia oil wells. fields before heading north to Basra and ulti- But, what type of equip- mately Baghdad. ment and method of pro- duction had the Iraq The main southern supply Southern Oil Company route for weapons and been using? And what fuel passed close to three Boots & Coots personnel supervise the insertion of a stinger that would be attached were the production vol- burning oil wells. to a Halliburton pump that delivered drilling mud, controlling the well pressure and ume and pressures prior to the blowouts? The sabotaged wells on killing the well. fire emitted large billow- More importantly, in the ing clouds of smoke and fumes that middle of a desert, where would Boots & could be seen for hundreds of miles. The PRE-PLANNING CHALLENGES Coots find the large volume of water desert sun further intensified conditions resources to extinguish the blazing oil The lack of drilling records and near the burning wells while prevailing wells? wind fueled the fire, spreading debris, schematics available for these wells cre- smog, and heat through the surrounding ated a problem in evaluating control THE FIRST STING OPERATION area. options for the wells. The war caused Iraq Southern Oil Company personnel to At the site of the first well, Kuwait Oil One well in particular was located with- flee the area. Company dispatched firefighters to in a few feet of the main road. During assist B&C controlling the well and windy conditions, travel by this well was For decades, Iraq’s oil fields had been simultaneously initiating response on difficult and completely stopping the produced under strict Iraqi government another well. convoy near this point would have sub- control. Few outside companies worked jected the vehicles to possible damage with the wells in this area so the strate- The cooperation enabled both teams to from smoke and radiant heat. gies for control efforts had to be devel- assist each other with logistics and oped from other information resources. resources. The Army Corp of Engineers was tasked B&C personnel also relied on knowledge with making the convoy routes passable dealing with wells in nearby Kuwait. For B&C, the first well proved haz- and safe. This assignment included ardous. A well on fire and producing 38 DRILLING CONTRACTOR November/December 2003 of drilling mud to control the well pres- sure through the pipe, killing the well. Once the pressure was eliminated, the B&C team worked on the well to exam- ine any damage and to begin the repair process. SECOND FROM THE PIT The second well that B&C tackled posed a different challenge, more hazardous than the first. The fire from well #64 burned at a 45° angle. The B&C team leader determined the casing valve had been damaged but the production tree was still intact. The angle of the flame created a prob- lem. The fire extended toward the road that coalition forces used for the main supply route. One of the Iraq wells was in very close proximity to a road used by military convoys. In preparation If the team extinguished the fire, the for extinguishing the fire, oil collection pits and drainage ditches were constructed at Boots & unburned oil would run onto the road Coots’ direction. and spray vehicles driving by. B&C lead- ers estimated that the well produced heavy black smoke is consistent with Estimated turn-around time of the vacu- 10,000 barrels of oil per day. heavy crude oil production blowouts. um trucks for each load was about two B&C planning would have to include a Because of wellhead damage and the hours. It took three days to fill the sup- volume of burning oil, on-scene com- ply tanks with enough water for a single manders decided to attempt a stinging attempt at extinguishing a well. operation with the assistance of Hal- liburton services from Kuwait. While personnel filled supply tanks, the B&C team set up fire pumps, monitor The concept of stinging into an out-of- stands and other equipment for the control well is not new. In fact, B&C uti- stinging operation. Halliburton’s crew lized this same procedure after the Gulf prepared to pump the drilling mud War at the Burgan fields in Kuwait. The through the stinger to kill the well once team had to manufacture the special- B&C extinguished the fire. ized equipment to specific dimensions and tolerances. Preparations completed, B&C began operations. B&C walked a track hoe into This capability required expert knowl- the blaze prior to fighting the fire and edge of uses and limitations of the sting, pulled the production head from the top but the fire first needed to be extin- of the well. guished. This necessity brought up yet another logistical challenge, water. The extraction of the production head removed the obstruction of the fire, cre- Several water injection wells in the ating a large base for the fire to burn south Rumalia fields provided a possible upward and vertical. This procedure solution, but the wells were not intended cleared the view of the source and for a large volume of use necessary to showed the target for the placement of extinguish an oil well fire. the stinger. Furthermore, the roads to the water The firefight was quick and successful, wells were not designed for easy travel only requiring a portion of the stored with large trucks. water. B&C personnel then inserted the stinger using the B&C Athey wagon. To resolve the dilemma, the Baroid Com- Attached to the stinger is high pressure pany of Kuwait offered its 130 barrel pipe that connected to a Halliburton vacuum trucks to haul the water, and pump truck, delivering drilling mud. Halliburton supplied 500 barrel tanks for storage. The truck pumped a necessary amount November/December 2003 DRILLING CONTRACTOR 39 Oil and gas flow from Well #64 that was exiting at a 45° angle. This presented a problem, as the fire extended toward the main supply route for coali- tion forces. When the fire was extinguished, Boots & Coots used two stingers in the casing valve and tubing to pump mud and killl the well. fast solution for elimination of the flow Once preparations were complete, B&C from the path of the convoys as neces- of oil or a contingency for relighting the initiated the firefighting. sary until the well was brought under well if killing was not an immediate control. option. The operation utilized 3,000 gallons per minute of water from three monitor Halliburton’s abrasive jet cutter suc- The challenge of water supply remained stands and an effort by ten B&C team cessfully removed the damaged valve, a big concern. The well was bigger than members. and the stinger was prepared to kill the the first, producing more oil, at a faster well. But the procedure would not oper- rate, through a bigger orifice, and a B&C extinguished the fire in six hours, ate without a hitch. lighter crude that was more flammable but the oil now flowed freely from the 7 and more hazardous. 1/16-in. casing valve for almost 500 When B&C pumped 9# mud down the 7 yards. 1/16-in. casing valve, pressure reoc- These factors pointed to a longer fight curred via the 2” production tubing. with the fire and the necessity for more Upon inspection, B&C leaders discov- water than in the previous well. ered the damage to the wellhead left the The circumstances required a bullhead 7 1/6-in. valve only partially intact.