SOUTHERN NATURAL GAS CO

gas_transmission Incident —

Incident Information

Report Date
OperatorSOUTHERN NATURAL GAS CO
Commodity—
Pipeline Typegas_transmission

Location

State
Coordinates33.40714, -88.62326

Cause

CauseMATERIAL FAILURE OF PIPE OR WELD
Subcause—

Casualties

Fatalities0
Injuries0

Costs

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

Location Map

Incident Narrative

AT 3:40AM SNG GAS CONTROL RECEIVED NOTIFICATION OF SMELL OF GAS (LATER DETERMINED TO BE CAUSED BY PREVIOUS ATMOS ODORANT MAINTENANCE ACTIVITIES) AND A LOUD NOISE FROM THE LOWNDES COUNTY 911. LOWNDES COUNTY EMERGENCY RESPONDERS WERE ONSITE AND BELIEVED THE NOISE AND SMELL ORIGINATED FROM THE SNG PIPELINE. SNG PERSONNEL WERE DEPLOYED TO THE LOCATION, AN UNCULTIVATED AREA, WHERE THEY SECURED THE AREA AND ISOLATED THE PIPELINE. AS A PRECAUTIONARY MEASURE, EMERGENCY RESPONDERS TEMPORARILY EVACUATED APPROXIMATELY 200 RESIDENTS TO THE LOCAL HIGH SCHOOL. AT 5:12AM SNG PERSONNEL NOTIFIED THE LOWNDES COUNTY 911 PERSONNEL THAT THE EVACUATED PEOPLE COULD RETURN HOME. EVACUATION WAS NOT NECESSARY SINCE THE ESCAPING GAS VENTED DIRECTLY TO THE ATMOSPHERE. THE 8-INCH WEST POINT LINE SEGMENT WILL REMAIN ISOLATED, WILL NOT BE RETURNED TO SERVICE AND WILL BE ABANDONED PENDING FERC APPROVAL.

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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