NUSTAR PIPELINE OPERATING PARTNERSHIP L.P.

hazardous_liquid Incident — — February 20, 2012

Incident Information

Incident DateFebruary 20, 2012
OperatorNUSTAR PIPELINE OPERATING PARTNERSHIP L.P.
CommodityREFINED AND/OR PETROLEUM PRODUCT (NON-HVL) WHICH IS A LIQUID
Pipeline Typehazardous_liquid

Location

State
Coordinates45.52605, -98.51501

Cause

CauseMATERIAL FAILURE OF PIPE OR WELD
SubcauseORIGINAL MANUFACTURING-RELATED (NOT GIRTH WELD OR OTHER WELDS FORMED IN THE FIELD)

Casualties

Fatalities0
Injuries0

Costs

Property Damage$12,000
Emergency Response$155,000
Other Costs$0

Location Map

Incident Narrative

CONTROL CENTER WITNESSED LOSS OF PRESSURE AND SHUT DOWN PIPELINE. FIELD OPERATIONS DISCOVERED LINE RUPTURE AT 17:45 APPROXIMATELY 1.25 MILES NORTH OF ABERDEEN ON NUSTAR LINE 5. EMERGENCY RESPONSE ACTIONS INITIATED IMMEDIATELY. ESTIMATED 500 BARRELS OF LINE FILL. PIPE WAS CUT OUT AND SENT FOR METALLURGICAL ANALYSES. *UPDATE PER METALLURGICAL ANALYSIS - THE RUPTURE OCCURRED AT NEAR MID-WALL LAMINATION WHICH WAS CONNECTED TO A SMALL VOID NEAR MID-WALL; AND, THE RUPTURE CAUSED BY FATIGUE CRACK GROWTH AT THE EDGES OF THE LAMINATION. *UPDATE - THE AMOUNT OF SOIL THAT WAS REMOVED FOR DISPOSAL WAS 2,352 TONS. THE ""CONFIRMED"" TIME OF THE RELEASE WAS 17:45 AND NRC WAS NOTIFIED AT 19:30, 1 HOUR AND 45 MINUTES AFTER ""CONFIRMATION"". THE TIME OF THE RELEASE ON THIS FORM IS THE TIME THE CONTROL CENTER SAW THE PRESSURE LOSS AND SHUT DOWN THE PIPE, WHICH IN THIS CASE, WAS A LEAK. PRELIMINARY INFORMATION WAS COMING IN FROM THE EMERGENCY RESPONDERS AND IT WASN'T UNTIL 1 HOUR AND 45 MINUTES LATER DID WE HAVE ENOUGH INFORMATION TO POPULATE THE NRC QUESTIONS REGARDING EXACT LOCATION, ESTIMATED QUANTITY, ETC. *UPDATE - 10-7-15 - CHANGED SECTION A. Q. 18B - OPERATOR RESOURCES ARRIVED ON-SITE AND IDENTIFIED ACCIDENT AND CONFIRMED RELEASE.

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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