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Last updated 5:08 am CT February 09, 2010.
Suspicious Fire Strikes Franklin County Oil Field
As oil field owner Brad Gesell watched workers clean up the remains of his charred oil field, he recalls what happened just 24 hours prior.
"When I got out here, the thing was fully engulfed and there's probably some 30 firefighters out here," said Gesell.
At about 4:30 on Saturday morning, Gesell got the call that his oil field was burning quickly. It was at that point, only one thing went through his mind.
"I knew that we'd been hit again by vandalism, this makes the 3rd time in one week that we've been hit by vandals down in this area," Gesell stated.
State fire marshals are still investigating the blaze, but Gesell says there's no doubt to him that it was arson.
"The valves were kicked open and the gas that escaped from result of the valves being open was lit, it was lit by either a match or a lighter or something, just so I guess the vandals could get a kick out of it I guess," said Gesell.
Gesell says that during the fire he lost about a hundred thousand dollars worth of steel tanks, and with that kind of loss he says something has to give.
"It's time it stopped, it just happened in Akin before, it's happened in Thompsonville, and now they're working the Benton area. I wouldn't be surprised if it's not the same bunch of thugs and vandals that's been ravaging Franklin County now for six months."
And because of the alleged vandals, not only is the clean-up going to cost about a quarter of a million dollars, Gesell says his business may not be the same.
"When a field this large is down for long extended periods of time, there's no guarantee that the production will return to it's original level, and that's what we're worried about right now."
By Andy Waterman
awaterman@wsiltv.com
Now: 1265714352
