PUBLIC SERVICE CO OF NORTH CAROLINA

Incident Narrative

PSNC ENERGY'S MILL SPRING TAKE-OFF STATION IS LOCATED ON A SITE OWNED AND OPERATED BY WILLIAMS-TRANSCO IN MILL SPRING, NORTH CAROLINA. ON APRIL 8, 2010, PSNC ENERGY'S SCADA SYSTEM INDICATED A LOW PRESSURE ALARM FROM THE MILL SPRING TAKE-OFF STATION AT 6:42 P.M. FOLLOWED BY A HIGH FLOW ALARM AT 6:47 P.M. PSNC ENERGY'S GAS CONTROL DISPATCHED COMPANY PERSONNEL TO THIS SITE TO INVESTIGATE THE ALARM NOTIFICATIONS. ABOUT THE SAME TIME, RESIDENTS IN THE VICINITY OF THE MILL SPRING TAKE-OFF STATION REPORTED SEEING BRIGHT LIGHTNING AND IMMEDIATE THUNDER. SIMULTANEOUS WITH THE SCADA ALARMS, AT APPROXIMATELY 6:40 P.M., A LOCAL PSNC ENERGY EMPLOYEE RECEIVED CALLS FROM THE POLK COUNTY SHERRIFF'S DEPARTMENT AND POLK COUNTY EMS INDICATING A FIRE AT THE MILL SPRING TAKE-OFF STATION. THIS EMPLOYEE IMMEDIATELY RESPONDED TO THE CALL AND ARRIVED AT THE MILL SPRING TAKE-OFF STATION AT 7:00 P.M. THE PSNC ENERGY TAKE-OFF STATION WAS ON FIRE. THE FIRE WAS OF A MAGNITUDE AND IN A LOCATION THAT THE PSNC ENERGY STATION VALVES COULD NOT BE REACHED. PSNC ENERGY ENGINEERING AND OPERATIONS PERSONNEL DEVELOPED A PLAN TO ISOLATE THE TAKE-OFF STATION UTILIZING OTHER REMOTE PIPELINE BLOCK VALVES. FIRE FIGHTERS USED WATER BLANKETS TO KEEP OTHER EQUIPMENT, SURROUNDING MATERIALS, AND VEGETATION FROM COMBUSTING. AT 9:55 P.M. THE TAKE-OFF STATION WAS ISOLATED AND THE FIRE WAS EXTINGUISHED. BASED UPON THE LOCAL SEVERE WEATHER CONDITIONS AND FIRST-HAND ACCOUNTS, PSNC ENERGY'S SCADA SYSTEM ALARMS, AND POST-INCIDENT SITE EVALUATIONS, IT IS BELIEVED THAT LIGHTNING CAUSED A TUBING FAILURE WHICH SUBSEQUENTLY RESULTED IN A STATION FIRE.