TARGA DOWNSTREAM LLC
hazardous_liquid Incident — — September 16, 2020
Incident Information
| Incident Date | September 16, 2020 |
| Operator | TARGA DOWNSTREAM LLC |
| Commodity | HVL OR OTHER FLAMMABLE OR TOXIC FLUID WHICH IS A GAS AT AMBI |
| Pipeline Type | hazardous_liquid |
Location
| State | |
| Coordinates | 30.52542, -95.06493 |
Cause
| Cause | EQUIPMENT FAILURE |
| Subcause | MALFUNCTION OF CONTROL/RELIEF EQUIPMENT |
Casualties
| Fatalities | 0 |
| Injuries | 0 |
Costs
| Property Damage | $0 |
| Emergency Response | $0 |
| Other Costs | $0 |
Location Map
Incident Narrative
AT 20:00 HOURS (09/16/2020), CONTROLLERS RECEIVED ALARM INDICATING ESD870001 AT PUMP STATION 12 HAD CLOSED (UN-COMMANDED). CONTROLLERS DISPATCHED TECHNICIANS TO SITE TO INVESTIGATE. UPON ARRIVAL, TECHNICIANS DISCOVERED ISSUE WITH TRANSMITTER. TECHNICIANS DIVERTED FLOW AROUND THE ESD VALVE (THROUGH PIG LAUNCHER) TO MAINTAIN SAFE OPERATING PRESSURE ON SYSTEM. ONCE TRANSMITTER WAS REPAIRED, TECHNICIANS ATTEMPTED TO EQUALIZE THE DIFFERENTIAL PRESSURE ACROSS ESD870001 THROUGH THE PIG TRAP TO RESUME PRODUCT FLOW. SMALL LEAK ON 1/2"" STAINLESS STEEL TUBING WAS FOUND ON THE TRAP KICKER VALVE. TECHNICIANS WERE UNABLE TO CLOSE VALVE BEFORE TUBING FITTING FAILED, CREATING A VAPOR CLOUD THAT FORCED EVACUATION OF THE SITE. VALVES UPSTREAM AND DOWNSTREAM OF THE PUMP STATION WERE CLOSED TO LIMIT PRODUCT RELEASE. AS A PRECAUTION, EMERGENCY RESPONDERS WERE CALLED TO SITE AND BRIEFLY CLOSED HWY 150 TO TRAFFIC WHEN VAPOR CLOUD SHIFTED DIRECTION TOWARD THE HIGHWAY (09/17/2020: 02:45 - 03:00). ONCE PRODUCT RELEASE ENDED, TECHNICIANS WERE ABLE TO RETURN PRODUCT FLOW TO NORMAL AND REPAIR TUBING ON MOV AT THE LAUNCHER KICKER VALVE. THE TUBING FAILURE APPEARED TO BE CAUSED BY AN OVER-TIGHTENING OF THE FITTING.
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.