OMEGA, Okla. (KFOR) – It’s been exactly 30 days since several oil and gas operations were shut down in Kingfisher County after twins Ronald and Donald found saltwater bubbling up on their property.
Investigators have stayed busy hauling away nearly 3,000 buckets of the stuff every day, but the problem is only getting worse. Ronald and Donald says it is growing too.
“Never ending deal. It just keeps a flowing and nothing stopped it yet,” said Donald Schweitzer.
More dead crops are plaguing the Schweitzer family property. Three weeks since our last visit, and things have gone from hopeful to three acres of dead crops.
“Absolutely ruined. It won`t grow nothing, not unless they dig the dirt out and put new dirt back in,” said Ronald.
The Corporation Commission shut down area wells for 30 days, but so far, no luck. Now they’re hoping a 15-day extension will help fix the problem.
“At this point, we have OCC staff, the consultant we have brought in and industry experts all working together on this,” said Spokesperson Matt Skinner.
But Ronald and Donald, aren`t so hopeful. The grater ditch where the saltwater is being diverted to is pumping out more and more potent saltwater every day.
“It’s running in a ditch and not trying to be contained in some kind of container. It is just open flow right now. The water went across the wheat field and stuff and our wheat didn’t come up. The ground is contaminated,” said Ronald.
They say crews aren’t even emptying it everyday, and with rain possibly coming, these twins are forecasting more damage.
“This is bad. The state should have looked into this and done something instead of just sitting here waiting for another six months to figure out what`s going on, for it to just sit here in a ditch. It`s bad,” said Donald.
“Just a guessing game on what to do next,” said Ronald.
In another attempt to find what is causing the purge, the state has also stopped new wells from opening in an 11,000 square foot radius. However, when we asked how many new wells there are, the spokesperson told us “none.”
Meanwhile, Ronald and Donald tell News 4 there is one well still operating in the area, owned by a very profitable company. They also say representatives from that company stopped by Wednesday to see the purge for themselves.