PHILLIPS 66 PIPELINE LLC
hazardous_liquid Incident — — June 16, 2020
Incident Information
| Incident Date | June 16, 2020 |
| Operator | PHILLIPS 66 PIPELINE LLC |
| Commodity | CRUDE OIL |
| Pipeline Type | hazardous_liquid |
Location
| State | |
| Coordinates | 28.51778, -98.18917 |
Cause
| Cause | EQUIPMENT FAILURE |
| Subcause | MALFUNCTION OF CONTROL/RELIEF EQUIPMENT |
Casualties
| Fatalities | 0 |
| Injuries | 0 |
Costs
| Property Damage | $85,000 |
| Emergency Response | $50,000 |
| Other Costs | $0 |
Location Map
Incident Narrative
"OPERATIONS WAS IN THE PROCESS OF REFILLING THE CRANE METER SKID WHICH HAD UNDERGONE MAINTENANCE, WHEN AN OVERPRESSURE OF IN STATION PIPING OCCURRED. A PRESSURE CONTROL VALVE (PCV) WAS SET IN 'LOCAL' CONTROL FOR THE REFILL PROCESS, BUT UNINTENTIONALLY REVERTED BACK TO 'AUTO' CONTROL WITHOUT HUMAN INTERVENTION. THIS CHANGE IN CONTROL STATUS ALLOWED THE PCV TO OPEN CAUSING HIGH PRESSURE FROM THE MAINLINE INTO LOW PRESSURE PIPING. THE OVERPRESSURE EVENT CAUSED A SUMP TO OVERFILL DURING THE PRESSURE RELIEF OF THE PROCESS PIPING ALONG WITH GASKET FAILURES. THE INCIDENT RESULTED IN THE RELEASE OF 5.12 BARRELS OF CRUDE OIL. OPERATIONS AND MAINTENANCE PERSONNEL RESPONDED TO RELIEVE THE PRESSURE FORM THE PIPING, INITIATED CLEANUP ACTIVITIES. BOTH OPERATOR EMPLOYEES WERE D&A TESTED. ALL GASKETS AND FLANGE BOLTS ON OVER PRESSURED PIPING SYSTEM WERE REPLACED, ALL THERMAL RELIEF VALVES WERE RE-TESTED, PIPING WAS PRESSURE TESTED TO VERIFY INTEGRITY. INVESTIGATION DISCOVERED A MANUFACTURER INSTALLED RIBBON CABLE WAS DISCOVERED LOOSE BEHIND THE PCV CONTROL PANEL. THIS ALLOWED THE PCV TO INADVERTENTLY CHANGE MODES FROM MANUAL TO AUTOMATIC. ALL OTHER SIMILAR CONTROL VALVES WERE INSPECTED TO VERIFY NO MANUFACTURER INSTALLED CABLING OR CONNECTIONS WERE LOOSE."
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.