PACIFIC GAS & ELECTRIC CO

gas_transmission Incident —

Incident Information

Report Date
OperatorPACIFIC GAS & ELECTRIC CO
Commodity—
Pipeline Typegas_transmission

Location

State
Coordinates38.15580, -121.69130

Cause

CauseOTHER OUTSIDE FORCE DAMAGE
Subcause—

Casualties

Fatalities0
Injuries0

Costs

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

Location Map

Incident Narrative

A FIRE OCCURRED AT APPROXIMATELY 1230 HOURS ON 3/5/10 AT THE LINE 114 DEHYDRATOR STATION NEAR RIO VISTA. DUE TO A DEHYDRATOR UPSET FROM AN UPSTREAM GAS SUPPLIER (VENOCO) LARGER THAN NORMAL QUANTITIES OF FLAMMABLE PIPELINE LIQUIDS WERE INTRODUCED INTO THE PG&E DEHYDRATOR. THE EXTRA LIQUIDS TRAVELED THROUGH THE CONTACT TOWER, OVERWHELMING THE VAPOR RECOVERY SYSTEM AND EVENTUALLY REACHED THE REBOILER NATURAL GAS FIRED BURNER WHERE THE LIQUIDS IGNITED. PROPERTY DAMAGES WERE APPROXIMATELY $50,000. THERE WERE NO FATALITIES AND NO INJURIES. SACRAMENTO TV CHANNEL 10 REPORTED THE STORY ON MONDAY MORNING 3/9/10; PG&E DID NOT BECOME AWARE OF THE REPORT UNTIL THE AFTERNOON OF 3/9/10.

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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