Fire At Fatal Kentucky Oil Well Blast Is Extinguished

BULAN, Ky. (AP) -- Crews extinguished an oil well fire Friday that had burned out of control since a deadly explosion two days before, an official said.

Perry County Emergency Management Director Charles Colwell said residents who were evacuated were expected to be allowed back into their homes by Friday evening, after the well was capped.

Three workers, two of them from Tennessee, who had been removing tubing from the well and installing a new pump died from injuries they received in the explosion. Inspectors are trying to determine what triggered the blast.

Rick Bender, director of the Kentucky Division of Oil and Gas, said making that determination will be difficult. He said the cause may never be known.

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