ENBRIDGE ENERGY, LIMITED PARTNERSHIP
hazardous_liquid Incident —
Incident Information
| Report Date | — |
| Operator | ENBRIDGE ENERGY, LIMITED PARTNERSHIP |
| Commodity | — |
| Pipeline Type | hazardous_liquid |
Location
| State | |
| Coordinates | 46.69564, -92.04938 |
Cause
| Cause | EQUIPMENT FAILURE |
| Subcause | — |
Casualties
| Fatalities | 0 |
| Injuries | 0 |
Costs
| Property Damage | — |
| Lost Commodity | — |
| Public/Private Damage | — |
| Emergency Response | — |
| Environmental Remediation | — |
| Other Costs | — |
Location Map
Incident Narrative
ON NOVEMBER 14, 2017 AT 7:35 AM CST, APPROXIMATELY 74 GALLONS OF CRUDE OIL WAS DISCOVERED NEAR ONE OF THE MIXERS ON TANK 45 BY TWO MAINTAINERS AT THE SUPERIOR TERMINAL WHILE COMPLETING ROUTINE ROUNDS. SUPERIOR PIPELINE MAINTENANCE PERSONNEL, ALONG WITH A MECHANIC TECHNICIAN WERE DISPATCHED TO INVESTIGATE THE SOURCE OF THE CRUDE OIL AND BEGIN CLEANUP OF THE CONTAMINATED SOIL. IT WAS DISCOVERED THAT THE SEAL ON THE MIXER WAS DAMAGED, DUE TO IMPROPER BELT TENSION CAUSING THE RELEASE OF CRUDE OIL. THE MIXER HAS BEEN TAKEN APART, THE BEARINGS HAVE BEEN SENT TO THE MANUFACTURER FOR A FAILURE ANALYSIS, AND WILL BE REPAIRED ONCE ALL APPROPRIATE PARTS HAVE BEEN RECEIVED AND AN OUTAGE SCHEDULED. FOUR CUBIC YARDS OF CONTAMINATED SOIL HAS BEEN CLEANED UP AND TAKEN TO AN APPROVED LANDFILL. THE RESULTS OF THE FAILURE ANALYSIS REVEALED THAT THE RELEASE WAS DUE TO A COMPROMISED SHAFT BEARING, LEADING TO COMPLETE BEARING FAILURE AND SUBSEQUENT DAMAGE TO SEALING COMPONENTS OF THE MIXER.
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.