CONSUMERS ENERGY CO
gas_transmission Incident —
Incident Information
| Report Date | — |
| Operator | CONSUMERS ENERGY CO |
| Commodity | — |
| Pipeline Type | gas_transmission |
Location
| State | |
| Coordinates | 41.80201, -85.58665 |
Cause
| Cause | INCORRECT OPERATION |
| Subcause | — |
Casualties
| Fatalities | 0 |
| Injuries | 0 |
Costs
| Property Damage | — |
| Lost Commodity | — |
| Public/Private Damage | — |
| Emergency Response | — |
| Environmental Remediation | — |
| Other Costs | — |
Location Map
Incident Narrative
ON OCTOBER 23, 2014, A ""PRIORITY 1, 120V"" BATTERY REPLACEMENT ALARM FOR THE UNINTERRUPTED POWER SUPPLY (UPS) SYSTEM TRIGGERED AT WHITE PIGEON COMPRESSOR STATION IN ST. JOSEPH COUNTY, MICHIGAN. AT APPROXIMATELY 12:39 AM, AFTER SEVERAL UNSUCCESSFUL ATTEMPTS TO CLEAR THE ALARM, AN OPERATOR ATTEMPTED TO CLEAR THE ALARM BY CUTTING POWER TO THE UPS SYSTEM. SINCE THE UPS SYTEM CONTROLS BLOWDOWN VALVE SOLENOIDS AT WHITE PIGEON, THIS POWER INTERRUPTION CAUSED SEVEN BLOWDOWN VALVES (VALVE NUMBERS 634, 636, 638, 751, 761, 771, AND 781) TO VENT GAS TO ATMOSPHERE. ADDITIONAL ALARMS WERE TRIGGERED AS A RESULT OF THE BLOWDOWN VALVE OPERATION, PRESSURE FLUCTUATIONS, AND LOSS OF POWER TO THE UPS AND DOWNSTREAM SYSTEMS. POWER WAS RESTORED TO THE UPS SYSTEM IMMEDIATELY AFTER SHUTDOWN. UPON ALARM ACKNOWLEDGMENT, BLOWDOWN VALVES WERE CLOSED BY A COMBINATION OF AUTOMATIC AND MANUAL OPERATION. AS A RESULT, THE BLOWDOWN VALVES VENTED FOR VARIOUS DURATIONS (BETWEEN 2 AND 11 MINUTES).
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.