SOUTHERN STAR CENTRAL GAS PIPELINE, INC
gas_transmission Incident — — December 7, 2011
Incident Information
| Incident Date | December 7, 2011 |
| Operator | SOUTHERN STAR CENTRAL GAS PIPELINE, INC |
| Commodity | NATURAL GAS |
| Pipeline Type | gas_transmission |
Location
| State | |
| Coordinates | 38.38840, -96.20768 |
Cause
| Cause | EQUIPMENT FAILURE |
| Subcause | MALFUNCTION OF CONTROL/RELIEF EQUIPMENT |
Casualties
| Fatalities | 0 |
| Injuries | 0 |
Costs
| Property Damage | $0 |
| Emergency Response | $0 |
| Other Costs | $0 |
Location Map
Incident Narrative
AT 09:26 AM THE GAS CONTROL ROOM RECEIVED A HIHI ALARM. A GAS CONTROLLER NOTIFIED A SOUTHERN STAR MEASUREMENT TECHNICIAN TO INVESTIGATE THE ISSUE AT 09:34 AM. AT 09:37 THE TECHNICIAN WAS CALLED AGAIN TO BE TOLD THAT THE EMERGENCY RESPONDERS WERE ON SITE AND RELIEF VALVE WAS BLOWING ON THE REGULATOR SETTING. SOUTHERN STAR'S TECHNICIAN TOOK 10 MINUTES TO ARRIVE AT THE SITE AND THE REGULATOR WAS SHUT IN WITHIN 30 MINUTES OF THE NOTIFICATION OF AN ISSUE. DURING THIS INCIDENT THE EMPORIA FIRE AND POLICE DEPARTMENT ALONG WITH THE SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT HAD THE SOUTH PRAIRE ROAD BLOCKED FROM SOUTH AVENUE AND HAD EVACUATED APPROXIMATELY 25 RESIDENTS FROM THE AREA. THE INCIDENT WAS A RESULT OF THE REGULATOR NOT HOLDING AND THE RELIEF VALVE NOT FUNCTIONING AS DESIGNED. THE HIGH PRESSURE CAUSED THE RELIEF VALVE TO BLOW GAS FOR APPROXIMATELY 25 MINUTES. THE REGULATORS AND RELIEF VALVES WERE REBUILT AND FOUND TO CONTAIN OIL WHICH CAME FROM THE LINE. THE DOWNSTREAM LINES WERE WALKED WITH INSTRUMENTATION TO VERIFY THE LINES CONTAINED THE OVERPRESSURIZATION.
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.