Old oil well under Poets Park Ladera Ranch short filled at 351 ft during 2001 re-abandonment DOGGR required cement squeezed past blockage to protect

Old deep drilled Exxon Mobil oil well near/under what became Poets Park Ladera Ranch short filled at 351 feet during re-abandonment 2001 due to blockage, DOGGR directive required cement to be squeezed past the blockage on outside of casing down to bottom of oil well to protect the lower 8365 feet, report indicates they did not do this! DMB Ladera LLC kept their dirty little secret covered up for 25 years of the poorly re-capped oil wells, until now.

Story behind cancer cluster in Ladera Ranch CA appears to link to old oil wells found underground and possible benzene vapors in the sewer system, any usable drinking water has to be piped in. There does not appear to be a link from the old oil wells underground to the Ladera Ranch drinking water, they are totally separate. The drinking water for Ladera Ranch is stored in underground concrete lined reservoirs. There is no major usable drinking-water aquifer directly beneath Ladera Ranch or in South Orange County, so there is no connection from the old oil wells to the water, there is no aquifer water supply underground. Like most of South Orange County, Ladera Ranch does not rely on local groundwater for its primary drinking supply; water is imported via major regional pipelines. Ladera Ranch, California gets its drinking water imported and piped in from regional water agencies via the Santa Margarita Water District (SMWD) with chloramine and the sulfites in the water.

LADERA RANCH OIL WELLS; I SENT NEWS TIP TO LA TIMES on Saturday Aug 29th, 2026 at 2:34 PST.  

----- Forwarded Message -----
From: Bill Warner <wbipi@verizon.net>
To: tips@latimes.com <tips@latimes.com>
Sent: Saturday, August 29, 2026 at 02:34:07 PM PST
Subject: Ladera Ranch - cancer - oil wells underground

FROM: Bill Warner
Bill Warner Investigations
Sarasota Fl
941-926-1926
site https://www.billwarnerpi.com/

I am a private investigator in Florida, I was asked by a client to look into the Ewing Sarcoma cancer cluster in Ladera Ranch and possible causes. California Dept of Conservation Division of Oil & Gas Wells records reveals two old oil wells, one from the 1920's and one from the the 1960's underground at Ladera Ranch CA that were not properly re-plugged and re-capped in July 2001, there is a lot more. DMB Ladera LLC the developer was aware of the old oil wells in July 2001 during the installation of the infrastructure the electrical field, drinking water pipes and sewer pipes they did a re-abandonment that incurred plugging problems of the old oil & gas wells but continued on with the $100 million dollar project, never making the two oil wells under Ladera Ranch Ca public, it has been a secret for 25 years. https://www.billwarnerpi.com/2026/07/ladera-ranch-ca-built-on-top-of-2.html

Aug 30, 2026 LA TIMES NEWS TIP RECEIVED; Less that 24 hours later on Sunday afternoon August 30th, 2026 the LA Times ran their Exclusive on the oil wells located under Ladera Ranch CA with possible links to ongoing problems. The LA Times article authored by reporter Clara Halter made no mention of my tip on the oil wells, and prior to August 30, 2206 the only publication concerning the oil wells under Ladera Ranch was mine from July 25, 2026,
https://www.billwarnerpi.com/2026/07/ladera-ranch-ca-built-on-top-of-2.html

In 2001 the LA Times wrote several articles for promotion of Ladera Ranch. Ladera Ranch, CA was launched by master developer Rancho Mission Viejo LLC and then DMB Ladera LLC with Phoenix-based DMB Associates providing the financial backing for the 4,000-acre Ladera planned community project. Grand opening in late 1999, with heavy expansion and sales phases continuing into 2001, its marketing campaign was highly distinct Ladera Ranch was heavily advertised as one of the nation's first fully "wired" master-planned communities. Archived promotional strategies and advertising materials from 2001 focused heavily on two contrasting but complementary themes: nostalgic, small-town Americana and cutting-edge, futuristic internet connectivity. In 2001, when home internet was still largely dial-up, Ladera built its entire marketing framework around a private, high-speed community intranet called LaderaLife.com. The overarching theme of the 2001 marketing material was the concept of giving families "roots and wings." Executive and larger premium homes topped out in the $600,000 to $700,000 range. At the time in 2001, less than 2% of the entire Orange County luxury market had crossed the million-dollar threshold. If oil wells discovered underground in early 2001 made the LA Times, home sales and contracts wold have evaporated and existing home owners would have been filing lawsuits, DMB Ladera LLC most likely would have gone bankrupt. DMB Ladera LLC kept their dirty little secret covered up for 25 years of the poorly re-capped oil wells, until now.

Paul Frost engineer for DOGGR was at Poets Park Ladera Ranch CA job site from 9:30 am to 10:30 am on July 19, 2001. Tom Walker an independent petroleum consultant and senior reservoir engineer in California was working as the rep for DMB Ladera Ranch and was overseeing the re-abandonment project on July 19, 2001.

The deep drilled oil well at 8,365 feet in 1961 near/under what became Poets Park at Ladera Ranch CA was short filled at 351 during a re-abandonment in July 2001. An obstruction was found at 351 feet drillers could not get past the obstruction. Paul Frost engineer for DOGGR and the project rep Tom Walker for DMB Ladea LLC called DOGGR home office from the job site at 10:30 am and got verbal approval to plug at 351 feet and back-fill. Did DOGGR home office know houses were going to be built near this old oil well location?

When submitting the final the DMB Ladera LLC report, Paul Frost the engineer for DOGGR used the 1961 plugging figures of 593 feet and 1305 feet in his report to California Division of Oil and Gas along with the new plug at 351 feet, is this legal? This is likely to be illegal and non-compliant under California regulations enforced by the California Geologic Energy Management Division (CalGEM) (formerly the Division of Oil, Gas, and Geothermal Resources).

The DOGGR deputy Paul Frost could got a verbal approval to cease drilling, but the verbal directive from DOGGR home office would sound like this: "Stop trying to mill past 351 feet. However, you must attempt to squeeze cement past the blockage to protect the lower zones to 8,365 feet. Then, place a 100-foot cement plug on top of the obstruction, place your standard surface plug/cap, and back-fill. We will document this change in a subsequent field report." It does not show on the report that an attempt to squeeze cement past the blockage with cement to protect the lower zones down to 8,365 feet was done. They did place your standard surface plug/cap, and back-fill. 

See this video above for the proper way to plug a deep drilled abandoned well. The drillers for DMB Ladera LLC did not follow this correct procedure, they did not re-plugged all the way to the bottom and at intervals up to the surface of the old Exxon oil well under Poets Park at Ladera Ranch CA, this well oil well is at risk. DMB Ladera drillers only plugged the 8,365 ft deep Exxon Mobil oil well at 351 feet to the surface, way, way short in July 2001!

The prospect of additional delays and expense to squeeze cement past the blockage at 351 feet and down to the bottom of the well at 8,365 fet would not have set well with the boss or bosses at DMB Ladera Ranch. All off this additional oil well re-abandonment work would be very time consuming, up to 3 weeks and at additional costs of up to $400,000, not what DMB Ladera LLC could or would tolerate right in the middle of their $100 million dollar construction project in July 2001. 

The Legality of Verbal Approval DOGGR operations in July 2001 routinely relied on verbal approvals via telephone to handle unforeseen downhole complications. The Process: If a rig encountered un-drillable junk or a casing collapse (an "obstruction") at 351 feet, the onsite engineer or project representative would call the local DOGGR District Office. 

The Mandate: While a verbal "OK" was permitted to alter operations dynamically, regulations required that this oral instruction be officially documented afterward. DOGGR would issue a formal Report on Operations (Form P&A / Form 110) or an amended Report on Proposed Operations (P-Report) detailing exactly what was discussed, what was authorized, and why the original plan was changed.

2. The Regulation on Obstructions ("Junk in Hole") A project representative could not simply request to walk away and place a shallow cap. A deep 1961 oil well drilled to 8,365 feet exposes open oil/gas formations and fresh groundwater tables deeper down. Capping it at 351 feet without isolating those zones creates a major environmental hazard. (14 CCR § 1723)

Under 14 CCR § 1723(f) ("Junk in Hole"), the rules explicitly dictated: Diligent Effort: The operator had to prove they made a rigorous attempt to fish, mill, or drill past the obstruction. (14 CCR § 1723).

*Down-Squeezing Requirement: If the obstruction could not be cleared, the DOGGR engineer would typically require the operator to attempt to "down-squeeze" cement under pressure. The goal was to force cement through or past the junk to isolate the open wellbore below. (14 CCR § 1723)

The DOGGR deputy Paul Frost could get a verbal approval from DOGGR home office to cease drilling, but the verbal directive would sound like this: "Stop trying to mill past 351 feet. However, you must attempt to squeeze cement past the blockage to protect the lower zones. Then, place a 100-foot cement plug on top of the obstruction, place your standard surface plug/cap, and backfill. We will document this change in a subsequent field report." 

It does not show on the report that an attempt to squeeze cement past the blockage at 351 feet to protect the lower zones down to 8,365 feet was done, they did place your standard surface plug/cap, and back-fill.

Falsifying or Misleading Official Reports: Under California law, submitting an inaccurate or intentionally misleading report to a regulatory agency is illegal. If the representative reported historical plugs as if they were verified or sufficient for the current re-abandonment without explicit approval, it constitutes a serious violation.

Failure to Meet Modern Re-abandonment Standards: Under California Public Resources Code (PRC) § 3208.1, re-abandonment requires wells to be brought up to modern integrity standards. Merely leaving an unverified obstruction at 351 feet and relying on 1961 historical data for the deeper intervals does not satisfy modern environmental and groundwater safety protections.

Mandatory Obstruction Protocols: When an obstruction is encountered during a re-abandonment operation, California regulations (14 CCR § 1723) require the operator to notify DOGGR now CalGEM, they did do this. The operator must typically drill out, clear, or wash past the obstruction to verify lower wellbore conditions. If clearing it is physically impossible, explicit variance/approval from CalGEM must be granted before a short-fill plug can be accepted as the final surface plug. If the project representative submitted the report without CalGEM's specific authorization to stop at 351 feet, the consequences are severe:

Civil Penalties: CalGEM can issue significant daily fines for non-compliance and improper reporting. Order to Re-Plug: The state will/could likely issue an enforcement order forcing the operator to return to the site, drill out the 351-foot plug, clear the obstruction, and properly isolate the deeper zones. Criminal Liability: Knowingly submitting false data or concealing the failure to properly re-abandon lower depths can result in criminal fraud charges for the individual representative and the operating entity.

A single surface-level plug at 351 feet at Poets Park Ladera Ranch CA leaves the bottom 8,000+ feet completely open, allowing deep hydrocarbons, pressurized gases, and toxic brine to travel upward and escape laterally into shallow drinking aquifers. California State guidelines specify that when an obstruction is encountered, it must be cleared, clean-drilled, or "fished out" so the underlying intervals can be cemented and isolated. If it cannot be cleared, the state requires specialized remedial measures (like "squeezing" cement under high pressure around the obstruction) rather than simply giving up and pouring a shallow plug. 

MEDIA CORRECTION: The abandoned oil well near/under Poets Park in Ladera Ranch CA is NOT located under anyone's house as LA Times reported Aug 30, 2026, it is under the street (Merriweather Pl) close to where a manhole cover is located marked SEWER. Note, LA Times reporter Clara Harter it is not a good idea to falsely list a home owners address on Agapanthus Street as the exact location for an abandoned oil well built in 1961 as being under their house, this is libelous and could affect the value of the house. LA Times reporter Clara Harter and reporter Zain Khan at the California Post appear to be somewhat recent college graduates, they must have matriculated from the 'University of Mars', because they sure as hell don't know how to locate anything down here on earth, morons!

The exact location off all abandoned oil wells in California is found in Cal-GEM well finder by the oil wells API number. The oil wells location is given in Latitude and Longitude numbers, the well near/under Poets Park Ladera Ranch CA is 33°32'44.1"N  117°38'10.3"W, it is under the street by the sewer manhole cover, it is under the street and not under anyone's house like the media at the LA Times published on Aug 30th, 2026, click on numbers for map.

* Note media at LA Times Clara Harter and Zain Khan at California Post, a dry well (DH) is not a well void of all contents you can't take a flashlight and look down the 8,000 foot dry hole and see the bottom, OMG. A "dry hole" (DH) in California—including the one drilled down 8,365 feet in 1961 under/near Poets Park—does not mean absolutely nothing was found, "do a little research and prep work before you publish your conclusions". 

In the oil and gas industry, a "dry hole" is a strict economic and regulatory term, not a literal description of an empty borehole. The California Geologic Energy Management Division (CalGEM, formerly DOGGR) classifies a well as a dry hole (DH) if it is incapable of producing oil or gas in sufficient quantities to justify commercial completion, they still leak.

Ladera Ranch CA Drinking Water Source is Robert B. Diemer Water Treatment Plant in Yorba Linda CA, It Sits on Top of 2 Old Shell Oil Wells that were plugged and capped in the 1950's. Ladera Ranch, California gets its drinking water primarily from imported supplies provided by the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California (MWD) via the State Water Project's California Aqueduct and the Colorado River Aqueduct, alongside local sources managed by the Santa Margarita Water District. Robert B. Diemer Water Treatment Plant operated by the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California. Metropolitan Water District treatment facility is at 3972 Valley View Ave Yorba Linda CA.

The more I dig into the mystery of the multiple Ewing sarcoma cancer cases and the old Shell oil wells under Ladera Ranch CA and possible water contamination, the more bizarre it gets. Today I discover that the water source for Ladera Ranch, the Robert B. Diemer water treatment plant, was built in 1961 on top of two old Shell oil wells from 1954, both deep drilled to over 4,000 feet. The Robert B. Diemer Water Treatment Plant operated by the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California was built between 1961 and 1963, officially starting its operations in 1963. The two old Shell oil wells that are located on either side of the Robert B. Diemer Water Treatment Plant were capped and plugged in 1954, there does not appear to be another re-abandonment of the two old Shell oil wells done during construction of the Robert B. Diemer Water Treatment Plant in 1961, why?

VIDEO above: Ladera Ranch CA has two abandoned oil wells sitting deep drilled underground that could be leaking carcinogenic benzene and deadly hydrogen sulfide H2S gas, one is near a kids playground at Poets Park. I first warned of these very potential deadly problems on July 25, 2026.

Deep wells tapping into older, sulfur-rich hydrocarbon formations (often referred to as "sour" zones) frequently experience degradation of their original cement plugs and steel casings over time. This structural failure creates a direct pathway for highly hazardous subsurface gases to migrate thousands of feet back up to the surface.

Researchers hypothesize that emissions like benzene and other aromatic hydrocarbons possess clastogenic (chromosome-breaking) properties that might cause DNA damage via oxidative stress from old abandoned crude oil & gas wells plugged & capped (P&A) that contain hydrogen sulfide (H₂S) gas. 

The exact root cause of the genetic swap between chromosome 11 and chromosome 22 (called a translocation) that leads to Ewing Sarcoma is unknown, and it happens completely at random after a person is born. Ewing Sarcoma is not inherited from parents. Oil and gas development (OGD) has been linked to increased pediatric cancer risk, but the literature to date is focused on hematologic malignancies and active wells. The emergence of suspected clusters of cancers such as Ewing sarcoma in children living near OGD and widespread presence of abandoned wells plugged & capped (P&A) in California warrants investigation. 

Sarasota Private Investigator Bill Warner, True Crime Stories, Bill Warner Investigations Sarasota Fl.