EXXONMOBIL PIPELINE CO

Incident Narrative

APRIL 29, 2012- 13:50 CST EXXONMOBIL PIPELINE COMPANY (EMPCO) DISCOVERED A CRUDE OIL RELEASE FROM THE LA 168 BUNKIE TO ANCHORAGE SECTION OF THE NORTH LINE SYSTEM NEAR TORBERT, LA IN POINTE COUPEE PARISH. THE PIPELINE HAD BEEN SHUT SINCE BEFORE MIDNIGHT SATURDAY, APRIL 28, 2012 AFTER A LOSS IN PRESSURE WAS IDENTIFIED ON THE SYSTEMS SCADA. THE LA STATE POLICE HAZMAT HOT LINE, NRC, ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY AND OTHER AGENCIES WERE NOTIFIED. THE OIL FROM THE NORTH LINE CRUDE PIPELINE WAS CONTAINED IN THE IMMEDIATE AREA AND RECOVERY EFFORTS WERE INITIATED USING VACUUM TRUCKS, SKIMMERS AND ABSORBENT MATERIALS TO RECOVER THE OIL. THERE WERE NO INJURIES. AIR QUALITY MONITORING WAS CONDUCTED IN THE IMPACTED AREA AND CONFIRMED NO DANGER TO THE PUBLIC. THE CLEANUP WAS COORDINATED WITH LOCAL AUTHORITIES, INCLUDING THE LOUISIANA OIL SPILL RESPONSE COORDINATOR'S OFFICE, THE LOUISIANA DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY AND THE U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY. THE AFFECTED PIPE WAS REMOVED AND SENT TO A THIRD PARTY LABORATORY FOR METALLURGICAL ANALYSIS AS PART OF A FULL INVESTIGATION INTO THE CAUSE OF THE INCIDENT. A PRELIMINARY ESTIMATE OF APPROXIMATELY 1,891 BARRELS OF OIL WAS PROVIDED TO REGULATORY AUTHORITIES. ONCE THE INCIDENT INVESTIGATION IS COMPLETE, THE SPILL VOLUME ESTIMATE AND RECOVERED AMOUNT WILL BE UPDATED. TOTAL COST OF THE INCIDENT HAS NOT BEEN FINALIZED. THE NORTH LINE PIPELINE ORIGINATES IN ST. JAMES, LOUISIANA AND CARRIES CRUDE OIL TO THE NORTHERN PART OF LOUISIANA. CUSTOMERS WERE BEEN NOTIFIED AND EFFORTS ARE UNDER WAY TO MINIMIZE ANY POTENTIAL IMPACTS. METALLURGICAL AND MECHANICAL TESTING REVEALED THAT A MANUFACTURING DEFECT' NAMELY, AN INTERNAL HOOK CRACK ADJACENT TO THE SEAM WELD WAS THE PRIMARY CAUSE OF THE PIPELINE RUPTURE. ELEMENT REACHED ITS CONCLUSION BASED UPON: VISUAL EXAMINATION, ULTRASONIC TESTING, METALLOGRAPHIC EXAMINATION, HARDNESS TESTS, CHEMICAL ANALYSIS, TENSION TESTS, AND CHARPY TESTS. VISUAL EXAMINATION OF THE FRACTURE SURFACE REVEALED A 'SMOOTH, FLAT FRACTURE ALONG THE INSIDE HALF OF THE FRACTURE FOR A LENGTH OF APPROXIMATELY 4 INCHES, STARTING APPROXIMATELY 6-1/2 INCHES FROM THE GIRTH WELD.' THE FLAT FRACTURE WAS 'PERPENDICULAR TO THE PIPE SURFACES AND TRANSITIONED TO THE SLANTED FRACTURE [FEATURE] FOR THE REMAINING 2-1/2 INCHES TO THE GIRTH WELD.' THE FRACTOGRAPHY INDICATED THAT THE RUPTURE INITIATED IN THE SMOOTH, FLAT FRACTURE AND PROPAGATED IN BOTH THE UPSTREAM AND DOWNSTREAM DIRECTIONS. THE CURVED PATH OF THE FRACTURE WAS CHARACTERISTIC OF A HOOK-CRACK DEFECT. THE DEPTH OF THE HOOK CRACK WAS 0.11 INCH, APPROXIMATELY 35-PERCENT OF THE NOMINAL WALL THICKNESS. IN SUM, THE PRIMARY CAUSE OF THE 2012 RUPTURE OF THE AFFECTED PIPELINE WAS A 35-PERCENT THROUGH-WALL HOOK-CRACK MANUFACTURING DEFECT ADJACENT TO THE PIPE SEAM. PART: A 9. ESTIMATED VOLUME OF COMMODITY RELEASED UNINTENTIONALLY (BARRELS): 2,880 11. ESTIMATED VOLUME OF COMMODITY RECOVERED (BARRELS): 2,000 PART H - NARRATIVE DESCRIPTION OF THE ACCIDENT ** THE COMMODITY RECOVERED FIGURE IN ITEM 11. IS A GROSS ESTIMATE BASED OFF OF THE VOLUME OF COMMODITY RELEASED (2,880.00 BARRELS). EMPCO RECOVERED THE VAST MAJORITY OF THE COMMODITY RELEASED DURING THE INCIDENT RESPONSE EFFORTS, AS RECOGNIZED BY THE UNIFIED INCIDENT COMMAND'S FINAL SITE TOUR AND DETERMINATION THAT CLEAN-UP OPERATIONS WERE COMPLETE ON MAY 15, 2012. APPROXIMATELY 1,200 BARRELS OF PRODUCT WERE RECOVERED FROM THE ENVIRONMENT AND HAULED OFFSITE BY VACUUM TRUCK. A LARGE, BUT UNDETERMINED AMOUNT OF OIL WAS RECOVERED THROUGH EXCAVATION AND DEBRIS REMOVAL AND HAULED OFF IN ROLL-OFF BOXES (407 BOXES WITH APPROXIMATELY 3,129 TONS OF OILED VEGETATION, OILED TRASH, AND OILED DIRT). EVAPORATION WOULD LIKELY ACCOUNT FOR MOST OF THE DISCREPANCY BETWEEN ITEM 9. AND ITEM 11.