COLONIAL PIPELINE CO

Incident Narrative

AT APPROXIMATELY 14:38 ON OCTOBER 23, 2014, A CONTRACT EMPLOYEE MONITORING AN AREA OF NEW PIPING BEING TESTED REPORTED A SUSPECTED RELEASE. THE SYSTEM HAD BEEN SHUT DOWN AT 1432 AS PART OF THE TESTING AND FILLING PROCEDURE. INVESTIGATION REVEALED THAT THERE WAS A RELEASE OF NAPHTHA IN AN AREA SURROUNDING FOUR ISOLATION VALVES LOCATED IN A WATER-FILLED EXCAVATION. THE SYSTEM WAS IMMEDIATELY ISOLATED AND PRODUCT CONTAINED IN THE EXCAVATED AREA. A VACUUM TRUCK ARRIVED AROUND 16:45 AND DEPRESSURIZED THE PIPING WHICH STOPPED THE LEAK. CLEANUP COMMENCED AND WAS COMPLETED BY 23:00 THAT EVENING. ADDITIONAL INVESTIGATION THE FOLLOWING MORNING REVEALED THAT THE CAUSE OF THE LEAK WAS AN IMPROPERLY (UNDER-) TORQUED FLANGE ON THE UPSTREAM SIDE OF THE VALVE. THIS WAS CORRECTED AROUND 11:00 ON OCTOBER 24TH AND PRESSURED TESTED WITH NO FURTHER EVIDENCE OF LEAKAGE. THE OTHER THREE VALVES IN THAT AREA WERE ALSO CHECKED AND FOUND TO BE TORQUED CORRECTLY. THE CONTRACTOR CONDUCTED AN INCIDENT ANALYSIS AND DETERMINED THAT THE EMPLOYEE PERFORMING THE INSTALLATION OF THAT FLANGED CONNECTION DID NOT FOLLOW THE TORQUE PROCEDURE AND DID NOT COMPLETE TORQUEING OF ALL OF THE BOLTS AND STUDS ON THAT FLANGE. THE PIPING IN THAT SECTION OF THE SYSTEM HAD BEEN HYDRO-TESTED PRIOR TO INSTALLATION OF THE FLANGED VALVES. A COLONIAL INCIDENT ANALYSIS WILL ALSO BE PERFORMED AND THE RESULTS WILL BE INCLUDED IN THE FINAL REPORT. LDEQ WAS NOTIFIED AS REQUIRED DUE TO THE QUANTITY OF THE RELEASE; NO OTHER REPORTING THRESHOLDS WERE REACHED. AN INCIDENT ANALYSIS WAS CONDUCTED ON THIS RELEASE AND TWO CORRECTIVE ACTIONS WERE APPROVED. (1) REVISED BOLT TORQUEING PROCEDURE REQUIRES COMPLETION OF THE TASK WITHOUT INTERRUPTION, OR IF INTERRUPTED FOR ANY REASON, THE DOCUMENTATION WILL BE DESTROYED AND THE PROCEDURE WILL BE RE-INITIATED FROM THE BEGINNING. (2) REVISED THE BOLT TORQUEING PROCEDURE TO REQUIRE THE SIGNATURES FROM BOTH THE PERSON PERFORMING THE TORQUEING AND THE INSPECTOR ON SITE.