Kuwait Oil Fields, Hell on Earth (1991) / Haendel - Sarabande

Thumbnail: Camels under a Blackened Sky (1991) by Steve McCurry

Footage used from the movie / documentary of Werner Herzog, named: Lektionen in Finsternis (Lessons Of Darkness) shot in 35mm.

Song used: Georg Friedrich Haendel - Sarabande (Performed by The City of Prague Philharmonic Orchestra)

The movie show the Kuwaiti oil fires caused by the Iraqi military setting fire to a reported 605 to 732 oil wells along with an unspecified number of oil filled low-lying areas, such as oil lakes and fire trenches, as part of a scorched earth policy while retreating from Kuwait in 1991 due to the advances of US-led coalition forces in the Gulf War.
The fires were started in January and February 1991, and the first oil well fires were extinguished in early April 1991, with the last well capped on November 6, 1991.

Around 5 million barrels (790,000 m3) of oil were lost each day. Eventually, privately contracted crews extinguished the fires, at a total cost of US$1.5 billion to Kuwait and causing widespread pollution.

Copyright Disclaimer Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976, allowance is made for "fair use" for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research. Fair use is a use permitted by copyright statute that might otherwise be infringing. Non-profit, educational or personal use tips the balance in favor of fair use.