WHEELING – From an explosion at a Marshall County well site in June 2010 to the Jan. 26 pipeline blast in Brooke County, 21 confirmed accidents related to the Upper Ohio Valley’s Marcellus and Utica shale industry have disrupted the lives of area residents, caused damage to the environment and, on at least two occasions, led to the loss of life.

These accidents do not count citations drillers, pipeliners, or their subcontractors received for unauthorized stream fillings, traffic violations or criminal activity. They also do not count the numerous complaints by residents regarding air and noise pollution, or spills from trucks.

While billions of dollars has flowed into the area from the drilling boom, it’s not been without its downside. Here is a brief recap of accidents in the gas fields.

— June 2010 – Marshall County

On June 7, 2010, 911 dispatchers received calls regarding a loud explosion, accompanied by large flames, on Beam’s Lane, just south of Moundsville. Drillers working at a well site owned by AB Resources – which later sold its local assets to Chevron – struck a pocket of methane gas during their work, causing the explosion. Seven workers were seriously injured in the accident, and the fire continued for about five days.

“That first one was definitely a learning experience for us,” Mike Mucheck, deputy director of the Marshall County Emergency Management Agency, said in reflecting on the AB Resources blast. “After that, we realized we needed to get some additional training to catch up with what they were doing.”

Mucheck also said establishing the Marshall County Energy Exploration Task Force helped alleviate some of the problems by allowing emergency responders to open better lines of communication with the drillers and pipeliners.

— July 2010 – Marshall County

A month after the June explosion, a natural gas leak at the Trans Energy Whipkey drilling pad along U.S. 250 near Cameron forced 12 households to evacuate. Emergency responders from Cameron, Moundsville, Limestone and Fork Ridge responded to the scene, while closing 5 miles of the road.

— September 2010 – Marshall County

A drilling rig at a Chesapeake Energy site on Pleasants Ridge in the southern portion of Marshall County caught fire after area residents reported hearing an explosion. The fire eventually burned out, and the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection cited Chesapeake for “failing to prevent the release of natural gas and the potential pollution of waters of the state.”

— October 2010 –

Marshall County

Jeremiah Magers maintained his water well became contaminated with methane – and that natural gas began bubbling in Fish Creek – shortly after Chesapeake Energy began fracking in the area. Chesapeake officials denied their operations generated the gas in Magers’ well.

— February 2011 – Avella, Pa.

Just across the border from Brooke County, an explosion at a Chesapeake Energy well site in Avella, Pa., hospitalized three contract employees with burn-related injuries. Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection officials said the blast occurred when workers were flow testing the wells at the site to separate natural gas liquids from the methane.

— December 2011 –

Marshall County

Emergency officials evacuated residents along Rines Ridge Road in the southern portion of the county when a storage tank caught fire at Gastar Exploration’s Corley drilling site. Gastar officials said there were no injuries, and officials determined an ignition from a water transport truck caused the blaze.

— February 2013 –

Marshall County

The West Virginia DEP issued several citations against Noble Energy for spilling 2,264 barrels of brine wastewater into a tributary of Big Wheeling Creek. The spill occurred when a pond that contained both fresh water and brine wastewater overflowed because someone apparently left a valve open for an unknown length of time.

— March 2013 –

Marshall County

A 24-inch Williams Energy methane pipeline ruptured in the area of Reid Ridge Road, south of Cameron. Although there were no injuries, nearby residents reported hearing an explosion followed by a “dust cloud.” About 30 residents evacuated their homes for about two hours before they were cleared to return.

— April 2013 –

Brooke County

Firefighters from several Brooke County and western Pennsylvania departments responded to a report of four trucks catching fire at a Chesapeake Energy drilling pad near Genteel Ridge.

— August 2013 –

Wetzel County

The West Virginia DEP cited MarkWest Energy for “conditions not allowable in the waters of the state” following a natural gas liquids spill from a northern Wetzel County pipeline that occurred following a landslide. This led to a fishkill in Rocky Run, a tributary of Fish Creek, according to officials with the state Division of Natural Resources.

— September 2013 – Marshall County

A portion of the Blue Racer Midstream facility along the Ohio River blew up, forcing about 25 residents in the Kent area north of the Natrium plant to evacuate as a safety precaution. The fire eventually burned itself out. Blue Racer officials later installed an emergency alarm system that would alert residents of any future accidents.

— October 2013 –

Ohio County

MarkWest Energy’s pipeline division destroyed a Valley Grove home after 6,000 gallons of water and drilling mud made its way into the structure. The mixture also made its way into Wheeling Creek, and the company was cited for polluting the state’s waterways and killing aquatic life.

— January 2014 –

Tyler County

An explosion at the Jay-Bee Oil & Gas Marcellus Shale drilling pad flooded a nearby field with sludge that residents feared could threaten the water supply. West Virginia DEP officials said a contract employee received injuries from the blast. The spill was eventually mitigated.

— April 2014 –

Belmont County

Belmont County Sheriff David Lucas said a contract employee died while working at the Rice Energy Big Foot drilling site when a piece of heavy equipment struck him in the head.

— April 2014 –

Marshall County

A 12-inch Williams Energy pipeline ruptured and caught fire, forcing residents within a half-mile of the blast to evacuate. The blaze burned for nearly two hours. “The explosion created a 10-foot crater, and the resulting fire scorched trees over an approximately 2-acre area,” DEP spokeswoman Kelley J. Gillenwater said of the Williams incident.

— June 2014 –

Monroe County

About 9,000 gallons of diesel fuel and 250 gallons of hydrochloric acid burned during the June 28 Statoil Eisenbarth natural gas drilling pad fire, which left roughly 70,000 aquatic organisms dead in Opossum Creek. This was not a blaze directly connected to the well itself, however, as trucks and hoses near the well caught fire. Residents of several nearby homes evacuated, while the inferno caused thick black smoke that could be seen for several miles.

— October 2014 –

Jefferson County

A methane leak at an American Energy Partners well pad near the Mingo Sportsmen’s Club forced residents of up to 400 homes to evacuate.

“It sounded like a jet engine, or a real strong wind. We’re about 2.5 miles away, and it was still very loud,” Jefferson County Road 26 resident Joe Felix said of the wellhead failure.

— October 2014 –

Monroe County

An 8-inch Blue Racer Midstream natural gas condensate pipeline exploded in Monroe County, on Mellott Ridge.

The explosion occurred on a pipeline near Beallsville, which Ohio Environmental Protection Agency spokeswoman Heidi Griesmer said was part of the Blue Racer network. No injuries were reported.

— November 2014 – Tyler County

A contract employee died while working at an Antero Resources drilling pad along Braden Hill Road. Antero Regional Vice President Alvyn Schopp said this was not a fire, noting it was an industrial accident.

— December 2014 –

Monroe County

For 10 consecutive days, residents of about 30 homes living near a giant Magnum Hunter Utica Shale natural gas well needed to find somewhere to spend the night as methane spouted from the Stalder well site in a manner similar to a geyser hurling hot water into the air. Officials with the Ohio Department of Natural Resources and Magnum Hunter continue examining the damaged wellhead to determine why it failed.

— January 2015 – Brooke County

The 20-inch diameter ATEX Express ethane pipeline ruptured Jan. 26, creating a ball of flame viewable for several miles. Officials with Enterprise Products Partners, owner of the pipeline, and regulators with the U.S. Department of Transportation Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration continue investigating. About 24,000 barrels of ethane burned.