WESTERN REFINING PIPELINE, LLC

Incident Narrative

AT 1:24 PM, PIPELINE OPERATOR, PATRICK MARTINEZ, ARRIVED AT HOSPAH STATION FOR A STATION VISIT. HE REPORTED OIL COMING FROM THE GROUND NEAR THE DISCHARGE PIPING OF MAINLINE PUMP #2. HE CALLED THE CONTROL CENTER TO SHUT DOWN THE STATION. STATION WAS SHUT DOWN AT 1:25 PM. AT 1:35 PM STATION WAS LOCKED OUT AND VALVES WERE CLOSED TO ISOLATE THE STATION PIPING. AT 1:35 PM A VAC-TRUCK WAS SENT FROM LYBROOK TO HOSPAH TO RECOVER STANDING OIL. AT 1:40 PM, MAINTENANCE CREWS WERE NOTIFIED TO RESPOND TO HOSPAH STATION. *WHAT OCCURRED AND CAUSED THIS INCIDENT? **THE GIRTH WELD JOINING THE REDUCER AND FLANGE WAS DETERMINED TO HAVE FAILED DUE TO A HIGH-CYCLE FATIGUE CRACK. THE CRACK INITIATED THE HEAT-AFFECTED ZONE (HAZ) OF THE WELD CAP TOE ON THE REDUCER SIDE NEAR THE TOP BUTTON OF THE WELD. THIS CONCLUSION WAS BASED ON THE FLAT, SMOOTH APPEARANCE OF THE FRACTURE SURFACE AND THE STRAIGHT, PERPENDICULAR CRACK PROFILE WHEN VIEWED IN CROSS SECTION. THE CYCLICAL STRESSES WERE CONCLUDED TO HAVE ORIGINATED FROM THE MECHANICAL VIBRATIONS INDUCED BY OPERATION OF THE #2 PUMP. THE STRESSES WERE CONCENTRATED AT THE WELD AS A RESULT OF THE PIPING CONFIGURATION WHICH CREATED A 4-INCH REDUCTION IN DIAMETER BETWEEN THE MAINLINE AND DEAD LEG IMMEDIATELY DOWNSTREAM OF THE #2 PUMP. ADDITIONALLY, A RESIDUAL BENDING STRESS CREATED BY POOR FIT-UP OF THE 6-INCH MAINLINE AND 2-INCH DEAD LEG WAS CONCLUDED TO HAVE ELEVATED THE MEAN AMPLITUDE OF THE CYCLICAL STRESSES. *HOW WAS THIS REPAIRED? **THE FAILED PART AND DEAD LEG WERE REMOVED. *WERE OTHER AREAS IDENTIFIED AND INSPECTED TO PREVENT RECURRENCE? **NO ADDITIONAL ITEMS OF CONCERN WERE IDENTIFIED.