
Oil Well Firefighting

by Science Photo Library
Title
Oil Well Firefighting
Artist
Science Photo Library
Medium
Photograph - Photograph
Description
Oil well fire. Firefighters from the Kuwait Wild Well Killers (KWWK), working to extinguish an oil well fire in Iraq's Rumeilah oil field. They will extinguish the fire and stop the flow of gas and oil by using a device called a stinger, a tapered pipe on the end of a long steel boom controlled by a bulldozer. Mud is pumped under high pressure through the stinger and into the well, stopping the flow of oil and gas. The oil wells are hundreds of metres deep and produce large volumes of oil and gas under great pressure, making capping them difficult and dangerous work. The oil wells were set ablaze by retreating Iraqi forces during the invasion by coalition forces in March 2003.
Uploaded
February 18th, 2021
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