An oil well exploded Thursday afternoon near the Ritchie/Wirt County line sending three men to the hospital and making heroes of a few helpful citizens.

Officials with Millennium Energy say Thursday afternoon three workers were working on an oil well at a site located off of Laurel Run Road near Route 53.

Fire officials from the Elizabeth Volunteer Fire Department say something made the oil bubble while the men were working, causing an explosion and small fire.

All three workers were thrown back because of the blast and because of the sites location, fire officials had a hard time getting to the scene.

"From the end, its inaccessible, and then we got word from another well tender that the fire was out at the well site, and Harrisville Volunteer Fire Department was also in the area, so they went in with a truck from another direction, just to be sure everything was under control there," says Doug Hill, Chief, Elizabeth Volunteer Fire Department.

Millennium officials say the workers were taken to the junction of Route 53 and Bear Run Road by 4 or 5 men who were riding ATV's nearby.

One of the workers suffered burns to his arm and another had minor injuries. Both men were treated and released.

The site's foreman has a fractured ankle.

Officials say there was no oil spilled, and the clean up and damage are going to be minimal.