Seventeen people were accounted for, but five people remained missing Monday afternoon. The explosion sparked several fires and sent thick black smoke into the air. The derrick, a towering metal structure above the well, also collapsed.
No injuries or fatalities were immediately confirmed, Oklahoma Office of Emergency Management spokeswoman Keli Cain said.
The drilling site was being operated by Oklahoma City-based Red Mountain Energy, said Matt Skinner, a spokesman for the Oklahoma Corporation Commission, which regulates oil and gas operators.
Skinner said a company that specializes in rig fires and other well control problems also responded to the blaze.
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