Oil Sands Explosion Injures Four

Three workers have been taken to hospital after an explosion hit the oil sands development near Fort McKay First Nation in northern Alberta.

The explosion occurred at around 3:30 pm MT Thursday. The company that owns the site, Canadian Natural Resources Ltd., said that three people were taken to hospital with injuries and a fourth worker was treated at the site. It’s unknown what caused the explosion, but it quickly engulfed a 146-metre tall industrial structure known as a coker, which uses high levels of heat to convert bitumen into crude oil. Workers in the vicinity said they heard a loud bang and residents reported seeing plumes of thick black smoke filling the sky. Monitoring equipment on site indicated that air quality was still good, and officials from the Energy Resources Conservation Board were headed to the scene to assess the environmental damage.