SUNOCO PIPELINE L.P.

hazardous_liquid Incident —

Incident Information

Report Date
OperatorSUNOCO PIPELINE L.P.
Commodity—
Pipeline Typehazardous_liquid

Location

State
Coordinates40.00690, -75.58410

Cause

CauseEQUIPMENT FAILURE
Subcause—

Casualties

Fatalities0
Injuries0

Costs

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

Location Map

Incident Narrative

ON 5/31/21 AT APPROXIMATELY 20:45 CST, HYDROCARBON ALARMS ALERTED PIPELINE CONTROLLER (PC) OF A POTENTIAL HVL LEAK AT THE BOOT PUMP STATION (UNIT BOO3) INSIDE THE PUMP HOUSE. THE PC MADE INTERNAL NOTIFICATIONS, ISOLATED THE PIPELINE FROM THE STATION AND SHUT DOWN THE PUMP. THE PC NOTIFIED THE COUNTY EMS / PSAP TO ADVISE OF AN ALARM INSIDE THE PUMP HOUSE AND THAT COMPANY PERSONNEL WERE RESPONDING. COMPANY PERSONNEL INVESTIGATED THE ALARM. LEAK WAS CONFIRMED AS BOO3 PUMP SEAL LEAK. EQUIPMENT INSIDE THE PUMP HOUSE WAS FURTHER ISOLATED. HVL PRODUCT WAS ROUTED TO THE MAINTENANCE FLARE. NOTE: THE PC NOTIFICATION TO COUNTY EMS / PSAP RESULTED IN EMERGENCY RESPONSE PERSONNEL LOCAL FIRE DEPARTMENT AND COUNTY HAZMAT TEAM RESPONDING TO THE LOCATION TO ASSIST AS NECESSARY. NO OUTSIDE EMERGENCY RESPONSE ASSISTANCE WAS REQUIRED. INVESTIGATION DETERMINED THAT THE SEAL FAILED DUE TO THE INBOARD SEAL SET SCREWS LOOSENING WHICH ALLOWED THE ROTATING SEAL TO AXIALLY SHIFT CAUSING THE SEAL FACES TO CONTACT RESULTING IN DAMAGE TO THE FACES AND O-RING SEAL. THE FAILED SEAL WAS REPLACED AND THE PUMP UNIT WAS INSPECTED FOR ANY OTHER ITEMS THAT COULD LEAD TO SIMILAR REOCCURRENCE. UPON COMPLETION OF INSPECTION THE PUMP UNIT WAS RETURNED TO SERVICE ON 6/3/21.

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.

Back to All Incidents More Incidents in