Deadly rig blast blamed on company’s efforts to save money

Attorneys for the families of five men killed in the January well explosion and fire near Quinton in southeast Oklahoma maintain the men are dead because one of the companies was trying to save money and used a risky drilling method.

Speaking with E and E News reporter Mike Soraghan, they point fingers of blame at Red Mountain Energy LLC of Oklahoma City, accusing it of ignoring warnings about using cheaper and lighter “drilling mud.”

“It’s error after error after error,” said David Rumley, a Corpus Christi, Texas attorney hired by families of two of the men who died in the January fire in Pittsburg County. He also contends a control room door was broken and blocked, preventing escape by the five who died inside.

E and E reports the accusations are based on dozens of depositions already taken in the lawsuits and were included in an amended filing this week in Pittsburg County District Court. E and E says the filings were the most comprehensive so far in the suits against Red Mountain, rig owner Patterson-UTI Energy Inc. and others.