GALETON, Colo. — A state energy agency is calling a blowout at a Chevron-operated oil well in Weld County an “unprecedented” incident.
The blowout occurred April 6 at the Bishop Well near Galeton in northeast Colorado. According to the Colorado Energy and Carbon Management Commission (ECMC), the incident involved a failure of the well’s internal safety systems, leading to an uncontrolled release of water, crude oil and gases.
“Basically what happened was a failure of the designed well barriers – and a loss of control over the pressure within the well bore,” said Kristin Kemp, ECMC’s community relations manager. Kemp described the event as a “very rare and unprecedented situation.”…