MAGELLAN PIPELINE COMPANY, LP

hazardous_liquid Incident —

Incident Information

Report Date
OperatorMAGELLAN PIPELINE COMPANY, LP
Commodity—
Pipeline Typehazardous_liquid

Location

State
Coordinates29.79181, -95.28233

Cause

CauseNATURAL FORCE DAMAGE
Subcause—

Casualties

Fatalities0
Injuries0

Costs

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

Location Map

Incident Narrative

FROM THE EVENING OF MAY 25 THROUGH THE MORNING OF MAY 26, 2015 AN EXCESSIVE RAINFALL EVENT OCCURRED RESULTING IN AT LEAST 6 INCHES OF RAIN IN A VERY SHORT PERIOD OF TIME. THIS RAINFALL SUBSEQUENTLY RESULTED IN HOUSTON BEING DECLARED A NATIONAL DISASTER AREA. EVEN THOUGH THE ROOF DRAIN WAS OPEN DURING THE RAIN EVENT, ENOUGH RAINFALL COLLECTED ON THE EXTERNAL FLOATING ROOF OF TANK 1222 RESULTING IN MORE WEIGHT BEING ON THE ROOF THAN THE ROOF HAD THE BUOYANCY TO SUPPORT. AS THE RAINWATER ACCUMULATED ON THE ROOF, THE ADDED WEIGHT OF THE WATER CAUSED THE ROOF TO TILT TO ONE SIDE FORCING PRODUCT UP THROUGH THE MECHANICAL VACUUM BREAKER(S) AND THE LEG SLEEVES ONTO THE EXTERNAL FLOATING ROOF. OVER THE SUBSEQUENT DAYS, PRODUCT WAS TRANSFERRED OUT OF TANK 1222 AND AN ATTEMPT TO LAND THE ROOF ON THE FLOOR WAS MADE. DURING THE LANDING OF THE ROOF, A ROOF LEG GOUGED A 3"" BY 6"" HOLE IN THE FLOOR THAT CAUSED THE REMAINING PRODUCT BOTTOMS TO ESCAPE THE TANK. REPAIRS WERE MADE TO THE FLOOR AND ROOF, AND IMPACTED SOIL WAS MITIGATED.

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.

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