A mayor emergency drilling operation got underway on the Balboa Peninsula in Newport Beach Monday as crews were rushing to permanently fix a methane gas leak from October.
The drilling operation took place near Marcus Avenue and 36th Street as the high drill rig, which is 110 feet tall or as tall as the 10-story building, was positioned on the narrow street.
“The special drill rig was brought in from Bakersfield as it was wedged in between the closely situated homes on Marcus Avenue.
“It’s a loud, constant noise, so at least it’s consistent, not spontaneous,” Hannah Dvorak, a neighbor, said, adding she was getting used to the drilling sound. “It’s kind of eventful, so it’s neat for me to keep an eye on it. I’m sure everybody is ready for it to be over.”
The work, which started Saturday to permanently cap an old oil well from the 1920s, will likely last for nine to 10 days.
City crews said the oil well sits several hundred feed directly under a home, and the oil began seeping up from the ground over the summer. The city also declared a local emergency in October when the methane gas levels from the oil spiked.
“We knew the neighbors that had the house with the oil leak,” said Paul Dolkas, another neighbor. “They are very friendly people. It was bummer for them that they had to move out. The oil came out of nowhere out of the ground.”
While city crews do not know what’s below the ground, they suspected the old cap from 1929 became dislodged or moved, allowing oil to come up to the ground.
The city planned to drill several hundred feed down, clean out the well then cap it with cement.
The drilling operation will continue 24/7, with big lights set up to do the work even at night.
This is a mess. Very loud and inconvenient. Frustrating,” Mark Vukojevic, a neighbor, said. “Most people are very understanding, trying to work through it. Our goal is to finish as quickly as possible so we can get this community back on its feet by Christmas, New years.”
Want more insights? Join Working Title - our career elevating newsletter and get the future of work delivered weekly.
