SEACLIFF : Deaths Blamed on Carbon Monoxide

Three men killed in a Rincon oil field accident died from inhaling carbon monoxide, not hydrogen sulfide as initially believed, according to final toxicology results made public Wednesday.

Deputy Coroner Jim Wingate said lab analyses showed that workers Ronald Johnson, Jason Hoskins and Sean Harris had high levels of carbon monoxide in their blood.

Wingate said no other toxic gases were detected by the Ventura County sheriff’s crime lab or the Chemical Toxicology Institute in Foster City, Calif., both of which analyzed the samples.

The accident occurred Aug. 10 as Johnson, Hoskins and Harris were working in a pit at the wellhead of a defunct rig near Seacliff. About noon, all three were overcome by fumes that caused them to go into cardiac arrest.

Four other workers who pulled the men from the pit became ill from the fumes, but recovered after medical treatment.

The three men who died worked for Pride Petroleum Services, which was hired by Tulsa-based Vintage Petroleum to work at the field.

Carbon monoxide is a colorless, odorless gas emitted from car tailpipes and other sources of combustion. It can reach lethal levels in enclosed spaces.

An investigation of the accident by state officials is not yet complete, officials said.

Officials with Vintage, Pride and a third company whose employees were involved have said they do not know the source of the carbon monoxide.