Creek County Abandoned Oil Well A Leaky Mess

By Craig Day, The News On 6

CREEK COUNTY -- There are hundreds of old, abandoned well sites across Oklahoma. One has a Creek County woman worried. She wants to know how long it will take to cap the well, and clean up the mess.

Near Silver City, in western Creek County, you can't see it from the road, but a dilemma is surfacing. It isn't a gusher like some folks dream of, just a trickle of oil that is more like a bad dream for Terry Turner.

"There's deer running out through here all the time," said Terry Turner, land owner.

Oil is leaking from an old, abandoned well.

"This is not safe. It's very unsafe," said Turner.

It worries Turner.

"I have neighbors. I'm afraid it's going to end up going down on their property. They have a pond and if they have fish in it, the fish is going to die," said Turner.

A Oklahoma Corporation Commission inspection supervisor made some repairs to stop the leak.

"It's definitely in the system and ready to go," said Roger Conaghan, Inspection Supervisor.

The Corporation Commission will immediately cap a well that poses a threat to health and human safety. But on a scale of one to five, with one being the worst, this is a three. 

Since there is no immediate danger, the state caps those in the order that they get them, which could take up to 18 months.

"It just takes time and we get them done. Anything from being under a garage floor in Bartlesville to being out in a pasture like this," said Conaghan.

For now, Turner is glad it's no longer leaking, and she's hopeful the well can be capped as soon as possible.

"Something needs to be done," said Turner.

Once the well is capped, then the Oklahoma Energy Resources Board, or OERB, can then come in and remove the soil and restore the area.