OLYMPUS TERMINALS LLC

Incident Narrative

"AT AROUND 11:45 AM ON MARCH 12TH, 2025, MARTIN GRAHAM (VP OPERATIONS) WAS NOTIFIED BY THE PORT OF LONG BEACH FIRE DEPARTMENT OF A POTENTIAL SPILL ON PICO AVE. UPON ARRIVING ON SITE, THE OLYMPUS TEAM MEMBERS DETERMINED THAT OLYMPUS WAS LIKELY THE RESPONSIBLE PARTY FOR THE SPILL. AT 12:45 PM OLYMPUS ESTABLISHED A COMMAND POST AND MARTIN GRAHAM TOOK THE ROLE OF INCIDENT COMMANDER. THERE WAS OIL LEAKING UP THROUGH CRACKS IN THE ROADWAY ONTO THE STREET SURFACE OF PICO AVE AND IN THE STORM DRAINS ALONG PICO AVE, WHICH ALLOWED OIL TO MIGRATE TO CHANNEL 3 IN THE LONG BEACH INNER HARBOR. THE PIPELINE CONCERNED IS CSFM-1183. THE PIPELINE IS 8 IN AND 10 IN DIAMETER. PORTIONS OF THIS LINE WERE BUILT IN 1966, 2003 AND 2020. THE PIPELINE IS DEDICATED TO CRUDE OIL, TRANSFERRING THUMS CRUDE FROM THE BROADWAY MITCHELL PROCESSING PLANT TO RIBOST. THE SECTION THAT FAILED WAS INITIALLY INSTALLED IN 1966 AND MAKES UP APPROXIMATELY 1,000 FEET OF THIS PIPELINE. ON SATURDAY 15TH MARCH AT 16:55, OLYMPUS CONFIRMED TO 100% THAT OUR PIPELINE WAS THE RESPONSIBLE PIPELINE FOR THE SPILL. THE PIPELINE WAS DUG UP AND INSPECTED IN ORDER TO DETERMINE THE CAUSE. DURING EXCAVATION A CASING ON THE PIPELINE WAS FOUND TO BE LEAKING AT TWO SEAMS WHERE THE CASING PIPE HAD BEEN PUT TOGETHER WHICH UPON REVIEW HAD ONLY BEEN TACK WELDED AND NOT FULLY WELDED AS SHOULD HAVE BEEN, OLYMPUS BELIEVES THIS IS HOW THE PIPELINE WAS INSTALLED IN 1966. THE PIPE ON EACH END OF THE CASING WAS CUT AND THE PIPE AND CASING WERE REMOVED FROM BELOW GRADE TO THE SURFACE AND THE CASING WAS REMOVED FROM THE PIPE. AFTER VISUAL INSPECTION OF THE PIPE AFTER REMOVAL FROM INSIDE THE CASING A HOLE WAS LOCATED IN AN AREA OF HEAVY EXTERNAL CORROSION. PIPE SECTION WITH FAILURE WAS SENT OUT TO THIRD PARTY LAB FOR FAILURE ANALYSIS AND METALLURGICAL TESTING. LAB RESULTS FROM THE METALLURGICAL TESTING LAB CONFIRMED THE FAILURE WAS THE RESULT OF LOCALIZED HEAVY EXTERNAL CORROSION AT THE POINT OF FAILURE. ELEMENT MATERIALS TECHNOLOGY REPORT EXCERPT: BASED ON THE TESTING PERFORMED, IT IS BELIEVED THAT THE RUPTURE OF THE PIPE WAS ATTRIBUTED TO PITTING CORROSION ON THE OD SURFACE OF THE PIPE, MOST LIKELY INDUCED BY LOCALIZED EXPOSURE TO CHLORIDES. THE PRESENCE OF SODIUM ALONG WITH CHLORIDES IN THE SCALE EXAMINED AT THE RUPTURE MAY INDICATE THE PRESENCE OF SALTS AT THE OD SURFACE. IT WAS ALSO DETERMINED DURING THE METALLURGICAL TESTING THAT THE SECTION OF THE PIPELINE THAT FAILED WAS ERW SEAM WELDED PIPE INSTALLED IN 1966. IT SHOULD BE NOTED THAT THE CORROSION ON THE PIPE THAT CAUSED THE FAILURE WAS NOT ON OR NEAR THE ERW SEAM, IT WAS NOT COMPROMISED IN ANY WAY. DURING OUR INCIDENT INVESTIGATION IT WAS DISCOVERED THAT DURING THE PREVIOUS PIPELINE MOVEMENT THE DAY BEFORE A HIGH-PRESSURE EVENT OCCURRED AT INITIAL STARTUP OF THE PIPELINE MOVEMENT AT APPROXIMATELY 18:35 HRS ON MARCH 11, 2025. THE PRESSURE SPIKE OF APPROXIMATELY 410 PSI WAS THE RESULT OF THE SHIPPING OPERATOR (NOT OLYMPUS TERMINALS) STARTING UP THE PIPELINE TRANSFER WITHOUT CONFIRMING THAT THE RECEIVING OPERATOR (NOT OLYMPUS) HAD ALL NECESSARY VALVES OPEN RESULTING IN THE PUMP SHUTTING DOWN DUE TO TRIPPING A PRESSURE SWITCH. NORMAL SHIPPING PRESSURES ARE < 260 PSI, OLYMPUS BELIEVES THIS HIGH-PRESSURE EVENT WAS A CONTRIBUTING FACTOR IN THE INCIDENT. AFTER PROPER COMMUNICATION ON STATUS OF VALVES BETWEEN THE SHIPPING PARTY AND RECEIVING PARTY, THE TRANSFER WAS RESTARTED AT ABOUT 19:00 HRS AND THEN COMPLETED AT 23:45 HRS ON MARCH 11, 2025, AT WHICH TIME ALL VALVES ON THE PIPELINE WERE CLOSED. THE DAMAGED SECTION OF THE LINE ALONG WITH THE CASING WHICH HAD BEEN INSTALLED IN 1966 UNDER A RAILROAD CROSSING THAT HAS SINCE BEEN ABANDONED AND REMOVED, WERE EXCAVATED AND REMOVED FROM THE GROUND AND A NEW APPROXIMATE 70-FOOT SECTION OF PIPE WAS INSTALLED TO REPAIR THE PIPELINE. POST REPAIR THE PIPELINE WAS HYDRO TESTED TO 940 PSI AND THEN RETURNED TO SERVICE ON MARCH 19, 2025, WITHOUT INCIDENT."