Louisiana Gas Well Accident Kills 1, Injures 2

April 4, 2011

Louisiana State Police say one worker was killed and two others injured in an accident at a gas well site just north of Maurice.

The accident occurred about 12:30 p.m. Thursday at a Hilcorp Energy Company well near the border of Lafayette and Vermilion parishes.

State Police spokesman, Trooper Stephen Hammons, told The Advocate the accident is believed to be related to a build up of pressure that led to equipment failure and a ruptured gas line, but the investigation is still in the early stages.

Hammons says the well, which sits in an isolated area amid cattle pastures and woods, was contained about 3 p.m.

He says an evacuation was not ordered because there were no homes in the remote area.

The victims’ names were not immediately released.