WEST TEXAS GULF PIPELINE CO
hazardous_liquid Incident — — March 23, 2024
Incident Information
| Incident Date | March 23, 2024 |
| Operator | WEST TEXAS GULF PIPELINE CO |
| Commodity | CRUDE OIL |
| Pipeline Type | hazardous_liquid |
Location
| State | |
| Coordinates | 32.53168, -100.84643 |
Cause
| Cause | EQUIPMENT FAILURE |
| Subcause | MALFUNCTION OF CONTROL/RELIEF EQUIPMENT |
Casualties
| Fatalities | 0 |
| Injuries | 0 |
Costs
| Property Damage | $750 |
| Emergency Response | $4,000 |
| Other Costs | $0 |
Location Map
Incident Narrative
"ON 3/23/2024 AT APPROXIMATELY 02:00 CONTROL CENTER RECEIVED A HIGH ALARM ON SUMP 9110 AT COLORADO CITY STATION. THE HIGH ALARM CAUSES THE SUMP PUMP TO ACTIVATE. CONTROL CENTER CALLED LOCAL OPERATIONS TO INVESTIGATE THE ALARM. AT APPROXIMATELY 03:00, OPERATIONS ARRIVED ON SITE AND BEGAN TO INSPECT THE STATION. AT APPROXIMATELY 3:30 OPERATIONS PERSONNEL DISCOVERED APPROXIMATELY 3 BARRELS RELEASED TO CONTAINMENT DUE TO THE SUMP OVERFILLING AND IMMEDIATELY CALLED THE CONTROL CENTER TO SHUT DOWN. CLEAN-UP CONTRACTORS RECOVERED FREE PRODUCT AND WASHED IMPACTED ROCKS. UPON INVESTIGATION IT WAS DISCOVERED THAT THE VALVE ON THE TANK 4 LINE WAS NOT FULLY SEATING WHICH CAUSED CONTINUOUS FLOW TO SUMP 9110. THE SUMP PUMP ACTIVATED AT THE HIGH ALARM BUT THEN TRIPPED OFF SOMETIME SHORTLY THEREAFTER AND THE HI-HI SUMP LEVEL DID NOT ALARM INTO CONTROL CENTER. THE FAILED RELIEF VALVE WAS INSPECTED, AND IT WAS DETERMINED THAT DEBRIS IN THE BODY DID NOT ALLOW THE SEAL TO FULLY SEAT. THE RELIEF VALVE WAS REPLACED WITH A NEW, TESTED RELIEF VALVE. FURTHER INVESTIGATION DISCOVERED TRIPPED OVERLOAD SWITCHES ON THE SUMP PUMP MOTOR ELECTRICAL PANEL. ONCE THESE WERE RESET, THE PUMP RETURNED TO NORMAL OPERATION. AS A PRECAUTION THE OVERLOAD SWITCHES WERE REPLACED. TO PREVENT REOCCURRENCE, AN ANALOG SUMP LEVEL TRANSMITTER WILL BE INSTALLED IN ORDER TO HAVE A REDUNDANT HI-HI LEVEL IN ALARMS WHICH IF ACTIVATED WILL CAUSE A STATION SHUT DOWN AND ALARM INTO CONTROL ROOM."
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.