Published August 24, 2012, 11:12 AM

Lighter might have sparked fire at oil well in ND

A company spokesman says a cigarette lighter might have caused a fire at an oil well site in the western North Dakota oil patch.

ARNEGARD, N.D. (AP) — A company spokesman says a cigarette lighter might have caused a fire at an oil well site in the western North Dakota oil patch.

The mid-Wednesday explosion at the site near Arnegard in McKenzie County sent two workers to a Twin Cities burn hospital. Fifty-two-year-old Bruce Ford and 48-year-old Rod Law were working for Mitchell's Oil Field Service as subcontractors for Statoil.

Statoil spokesman Ola Aanestad tells The Forum newspaper that a preliminary investigation found that a cigarette lighter being used near an oil tank ignited vapors. The company and state officials are continuing to investigate.

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