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FRONTIER NATURAL GAS COMPANY

gas_transmission Incident —

Incident Information

Report Date—
OperatorFRONTIER NATURAL GAS COMPANY
Commodity—
Pipeline Typegas_transmission

Location

State
Coordinates36.47501, -80.60686

Cause

CauseINCORRECT OPERATION
Subcause—

Casualties

Fatalities0
Injuries0

Costs

Property Damage—
Lost Commodity—
Public/Private Damage—
Emergency Response—
Environmental Remediation—
Other Costs—

Location Map

Incident Narrative

WHEN THE AREA WAS EXCAVATED IN 2022 TO REPAIR THE LEAK, IT WAS DISCOVERED THAT THE PIPING INSTALLED UNDER THE ROAD DID NOT ALIGN WITH ANOTHER SECTION OF PIPE AND A WRINKLE BEND EXISTED BETWEEN THE TWO SECTIONS. RATHER THAN REWORKING THE AREA SO THAT THE PIPES WOULD MORE CLOSELY ALIGN, FRONTIER BELIEVES THAT THE CONTRACTOR WHO INSTALLED THE PIPE IN 1999 USED EQUIPMENT TO MANIPULATE THE LOCATION OF THE PIPE THROUGH PULLING AND/OR PUSHING TO ALIGN THE PIPES SO THAT THEY COULD BE JOINED VIA WELDING. THE SECTION OF PIPE WITH THE WRINKLE BEND IS BELIEVED TO HAVE BEEN INSTALLED WITH A DIRECTIONAL DRILL AS IT IS UNDER A ROAD SO THE CONTRACTOR DID NOT WANT TO OPEN CUT THE ROAD TO CORRECT THE ISSUE. DURING THE PROCESS TO MANIPULATE THE PIPING, THE WRINKLE BEND WAS CREATED WHICH CRACKED THE COATING AND OVER TIME ALLOWED FOR CORROSION TO CREATE A HOLE INSIDE OF THE WRINKLE BEND. FRONTIER HAD A FAILURE TO PINPOINT AND REPAIR THE LEAK IN 2018 WHEN WE DUG WHERE WE WERE INITIALLY GETTING GAS READINGS. WE DID NOT FIND ANYTHING ON THE TRANSMISSION LINE, THEREFORE WE ASSUME THOSE IN CHARGE AT THE TIME THOUGHT IT HAD TO BE ON OUR PLASTIC DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM LOCATED IN THE SAME VICINITY. THIS SHOULD HAVE BEEN MONITORED AND TRACKED AS A LEAK FROM THIS POINT ON, BUT THAT WAS NOT THE CASE. COMPLIANCE TASKS SUCH AS LEAK SURVEY/VALVE MAINTENANCE FOUND THIS LEAK AGAIN BETWEEN THE YEARS OF 2018-2022, BUT IT WAS STILL ASSUMED TO BE ON THE PLASTIC SYSTEM AND WAS NOT PROPERLY WRITTEN UP BY THOSE IN CHARGE AT THE TIME. HIGH GAS READINGS WERE FOUND DURING 2022 LEAK SURVEY, AND THOSE CURRENTLY IN CHARGE IMMEDIATELY PUT PLANS IN PLACE TO DIG WHERE THE GAS READINGS WERE POINTING US TOWARDS. THE PLEDCO WAS USED IN AUGUST 2022 TO STOP THE LEAK WE FOUND IN THE WRINKLE BEND. THE PLEDCO SHOULDN'T HAVE BEEN USED ACCORDING TO MANUFACTURER'S SPECIFICATIONS, WHICH IS A LESSON LEARNED. THE PLEDCO FAILED IN JANUARY 2023, AND WE CALLED TDW TO STOPPLE TO REPLACE THE PIPE. THE GAS LOST CALCULATION IN THIS REPORT IS AN ESTIMATE OVER THE 5 YEARS WE ARE AWARE OF THAT THE PIPE WAS LEAKING.

About This Pipeline Incident

Pipeline incident data is reported to the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA). All significant incidents involving fatalities, injuries, or property damage over $50,000 must be reported.

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