Fire and water come out from a water pipe in Concepcion town, Tarlac province. (Screengrab from the Facebook video of Mayor Andres Lacson)
MABALACAT CITY, Pampanga—The Department of Energy (DOE) has collected samples of water and gas coming out from a water pump to find out if there is a natural gas deposit underneath the farm lot in Concepcion town, Tarlac province.
Energy Usec. Donato Marcos sent a team led by geologist Andres Pangilinan to check the site in Stio Baraka, Murcia village on Nov. 9 to collect samples for laboratory analysis to determine what kind of gas was making the water from a water pump flammable and if the area has methane or biogas deposits.
He said the laboratory test results would be known after about 10 days and would benefit Filipinos, especially the Concepcion townsfolk, if the test would confirm that it has natural gas deposits.
For three years and eight months, Eugene Guerrero, a businessman from Metro Manila, has been wondering why the water pump installed on his one-hectare farm lot has been emitting “flammable water.”
“It was in March 2018, while the water pump was being installed on the lot that I bought when my workers discovered the gas coming out from the pump. They called me and said there was gas under the ground, as the water was bubbly although odorless,” he told the Inquirer over the phone.
The newly-installed hand pump in Concepcion town, Tarlac province was found emitting flammable gas in March 2018. (Photo courtesy of Eugene Guerrero)
From Malabon City, he immediately drove north to Concepcion town. When he arrived at his property, a worker suggested to light up the water and he agreed.
“It lit like a fire came out from a dragon’s mouth,” he said.
Guerrero said they had a hard time putting out the fire. “The fire was mixed with the water flowing from the pump. We had to pour sand and cover it with a wet blanket to put the fire out.”
Late last year, Concepcion Mayor Andres Lacson learned about the “fire-breathing pump” and told Guerrero that he would ask the DOE to test it.
In a Facebook video on Nov. 9, Lacson said he had sought the DOE’s intervention to find out whether or not there is a natural gas deposit in the area that could be extracted.
Guerrero said he bought the one-hectare lot in 2018 which used to be a rice field and converted it into a private pool resort with a farmhouse. In March this year, he had the hand pump removed and installed a double valve system to control the water and gas.