EXPLORER PIPELINE CO

Incident Narrative

UPON ARRIVAL AT THE EXPLORER PIPELINE CONROE, MONTGOMERY COUNTY, TEXAS PUMP STATION ON FEBRUARY 15, 2012 AT 13:58 HOURS, AN EMPLOYEE IDENTIFIED THAT VALVE MOV-207, A 20-INCH ANSI CLASS 600 GROVE MODEL B-5 BALL VALVE WAS LEAKING FROM THE VALVE GEAR BOX. THE EMPLOYEE IMMEDIATELY NOTIFIED EXPLORER PIPELINE CONTROL CENTER WHO IMMEDIATELY INITIATED A PIPELINE SHUTDOWN AND ISOLATED THE PUMP STATION. INTERNAL RESPONSE NOTIFICATIONS WERE MADE AND DEFENSIVE MEASURES WERE TAKEN TO CONTAIN THE PRODUCT. FOURTEEN (14) BARRELS OF GASOLINE WAS RELEASED. ALL FREE-PHASE PRODUCT WAS REMOVED AND ANY IMPACTED SOIL WAS EXCAVATED, TESTED AND WAS PROPERLY DISPOSED. A VALVE MANUFACTURE REPRESENTATIVE WAS ADDITIONALLY DISPATCHED TO THE CONROE PUMP STATION TO ASSIST WITH THE INVESTIGATION OF THE VALVE. AFTER BREAKING THE VALVE DOWN THE SOURCE OF THE LEAK WAS IDENTIFIED AS A FAILED O-RING. THE O-RING INVOLVED WITH THE INCIDENT WAS SUBMITTED TO AN INDEPENDENT THIRD-PARTY TESTING FACILITY FOR A FAILURE ANALYSIS. THE FINAL REPORT FROM THE LAB INDICATED THAT THE O-RING WAS CONSTRUCTED OF THE PROPER MATERIAL AND OF SUFFICIENT HARDNESS AND IT REVEALED NO EVIDENT OF WEEPING OR GROSS MANUFACTURING DEFECTS SUCH AS POROSITY OR INCOMPLETE HOMOGENIZATION OF FILLERS AND POLYMERS. THE REPORT CONCLUDED THAT THE APPROXIMATE CAUSE OF THE SEPARATION OF THE O-RING WAS DUE TO A SLOW CRACK GROWTH. IN MARCH 2013 PHMSA REQUESTED CLOSURE TO THE INCIDENT REPORT. THEREFORE, THE ENVIRONMENTAL REMEDIATION COSTS ASSOCIATED WITH THE INCIDENT ARE LONG TERM ESTIMATED WORST CASE CALCULATED COSTS.