Dangerous incident
Recommendations to industry: Hazard: chemical reaction
Risk: harm to people from a flammable gas fire/explosion.
Recommendations:
- Review procedures for drilling into a hard strata where there is potential for gas.
- Review should consider ‘wet hole’ drill as a control for reducing the drill tip temperature.
- Drill operator training should include any detected gas comes from a reservoir of an unknown quantity
A gas fire underground is a dangerous incident – it requires scene preservation and immediate notification. For guidance on reporting refer to the notification of incident and injury guide.