GULF SOUTH PIPELINE COMPANY, LLC
gas_transmission Incident — — February 6, 2020
Incident Information
| Incident Date | February 6, 2020 |
| Operator | GULF SOUTH PIPELINE COMPANY, LLC |
| Commodity | NATURAL GAS |
| Pipeline Type | gas_transmission |
Location
| State | |
| Coordinates | 29.97403, -91.80930 |
Cause
| Cause | EQUIPMENT FAILURE |
| Subcause | THREADED CONNECTION/COUPLING FAILURE |
Casualties
| Fatalities | 0 |
| Injuries | 0 |
Costs
| Property Damage | $90,000 |
| Emergency Response | $1,200 |
| Other Costs | $0 |
Location Map
Incident Narrative
ON 2-6-2020 AT 14:50, GULF SOUTH PIPELINE RECEIVED A PHONE CALL THAT THERE WAS A GAS SMELL NEAR ITS FACILITY. GULF SOUTH TECHNICIANS ARRIVED AT THE LOCATION AT APPROXIMATELY 16:05, SMELLED ODORANT, AND LOCATED A LEAK USING A GAS DETECTOR. TECHNICIANS CONTACTED AREA MANAGER AT 16:10, PROVIDED LEAK LOCATION DETAILS, AND A CONTRACTOR WAS CONTACTED TO EXCAVATE THE LEAK LOCATION. PRESSURE CONTROL VALVE SET POINT WAS LOWERED BY 20% OF THE OPERATING PRESSURE AT THE TIME OF DISCOVERY (FROM 275 PSIG TO 225 PSIG). AREA MANAGER NOTIFIED LAHAZMAT TO REPORT THE LEAK AT 16:35 AND MADE ADDITIONAL INTERNAL NOTIFICATIONS. AT APPROXIMATELY 18:00, CONTRACTOR ARRIVED ONSITE, HAND EXCAVATED THE LEAK LOCATION, AND DISCOVERED A LEAKING MECHANICAL COUPLING. CONTRACTOR BACK-FILLED HOLE AND TECHNICIANS MONITORED AREA. THE LEAK COULD ONLY BE DETECTED BY MONITOR WITHIN INCHES OF THE GROUND AND WAS DETERMINED TO BE LOW GRADE. THE LEAK LOCATION WAS MONITORED UNTIL THE BLOW DOWN AND REPAIR OCCURRED ON 2-19-2020. LEAK STOPPED AFTER LINE WAS DEPRESSURIZED AT 10:45 ON 2-19-2020. WELD OVER WAS INSTALLED AND LINE RETURNED TO SERVICE AT APPROXIMATELY 18:00 ON 2-19-2020.
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.