INDEPENDENCE TOWNSHIP — An explosion at an orphan well site in Independence Township injured six people Monday morning, most of them critically, according to local officials.

The Ohio Department of Natural Resources said its Division of Oil and Gas Resources Management sent an emergency response team to the scene along Independence Township 420 inside the Wayne National Forest. The well was being plugged by a contractor when the explosion occurred.

Reno Fire Chief Jon Bradford said his department received the call at 11:51 a.m.

“We got called to look at a well that had an explosion, and what we believe now, there were six people injured, I think five critical,” Bradford said.

The injured workers were first taken to Memorial Health System and later transported by medical helicopters to other facilities, Bradford said.

Fire crews from the Reno, Marietta, New Matamoras, Sardis, Little Muskingum and Newport departments responded to the scene. Bradford said the fire was extinguished, and the ODNR and the State Fire Marshal’s office are now leading the investigation.

It was not immediately clear Monday evening whether the well in question was an oil or natural gas well.

Orphaned wells are those that have no owner. Ohio’s orphan well program was created in 1977 to plug abandoned oil and natural gas wells across the state.

According to ODNR’s website, orphan wells must be properly plugged “to protect public health and safety, conserve natural resources, and allow the efficient development of Ohio’s oil and gas resources.”

Staff reporter Art Smith and City Editor Evan Bevins contributed to this story.