EXPLORER PIPELINE CO
hazardous_liquid Incident —
Incident Information
| Report Date | — |
| Operator | EXPLORER PIPELINE CO |
| Commodity | — |
| Pipeline Type | hazardous_liquid |
Location
| State | |
| Coordinates | 29.90087, -94.00566 |
Cause
| Cause | EQUIPMENT FAILURE |
| 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 JUNE 25, 2023, AN EMPLOYEE WAS SETTING UP TO LAUNCH A PIPELINE BATCHING SPHERE FROM PORT ARTHUR AND STEPPED OUTSIDE TO VERIFY THE LOAD PIN WAS OPEN. AT THAT TIME, THE EMPLOYEE NOTICED A SPRAY OF JET FUEL COMING FROM THE LAUNCHER DOOR AT THE 2 O'CLOCK POSITION. THE EMPLOYEE IMMEDIATELY SHUT DOWN THE PIPELINE AND MADE THE APPROPRIATE NOTIFICATIONS. INTERVIEWS WITH LOCAL PERSONNEL CONFIRMED THE LAUNCHER WAS LOADED ON JUNE 23, 2023, AND SPHERE LAUNCHING WAS INITIATED WITH NO INDICATION OF A DAMAGED O-RING. THIRD-PARTY TESTING REFLECTED THAT THE LAUNCHER DOOR O-RING WAS PINCHED AND APPARENTLY DAMAGED BY THE 1971 LAUNCHER DOOR. TESTING COULDN'T CONCLUSIVELY DETERMINE IF THE DOOR WAS MISALIGNED WHEN SHUT AND CAUSED THE PINCH TO THE O-RING. HOWEVER, COMMUNICATIONS WITH THE MANUFACTURER INDICATES THEY SUSPECT THAT THE DOOR COULD HAVE BEEN MISALIGNED CAUSING THE DAMAGE. THE PORT ARTHUR LAUNCHER DOOR WAS REPLACED IN DECEMBER 2023 AS PART OF THE ON-GOING PROJECT TO REPLACE 1971 LAUNCHER DOORS WITH NEW EQUIPMENT.
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.