RCMP confirm northeast B.C. gas leak caused by fifth bombing to target EnCana

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DAWSON CREEK, B.C. - The RCMP say a bomb was behind a leak at a gas well belonging to Calgary-based EnCana (TSX:ECA), one of the major players in northern British Columbia's rapidly expanding oil and gas industry.

It's the fifth time since last fall that the company's oil and gas operations have been targeted.

The Mounties said yesterday that the gas leak discovered on Canada Day at an EnCana sweet gas well south of Dawson Creek, not far from the B.C.-Alberta boundary, was caused by an explosion.

And while investigators hadn't yet been able to start an extensive forensic investigation of the scene, the force had already linked the attack to four others last October and January.

"Preliminary examinations of the natural gas leak at one of the EnCana natural gas pipeline sites at Pouce Coupe, B.C., confirm that the rupture was caused by an explosion," the RCMP said in a news release.

The leak was discovered by an EnCana employee Wednesday morning at the sweet gas well near the village of Pouce Coupe. The worker was conducting a routine check when he noticed the damage to the wellhead, as well as a drop in pressure. Investigators with the RCMP's Integrated National Security Enforcement Team were waiting for EnCana to seal off the leak before moving in to gather evidence. The well is about three kilometres from the nearest resident.