CYPRESS INTERSTATE PIPELINE LLC
hazardous_liquid Incident — — February 25, 2013
Incident Information
| Incident Date | February 25, 2013 |
| Operator | CYPRESS INTERSTATE PIPELINE LLC |
| Commodity | HVL OR OTHER FLAMMABLE OR TOXIC FLUID WHICH IS A GAS AT AMBI |
| Pipeline Type | hazardous_liquid |
Location
| State | |
| Coordinates | 29.98779, -94.06377 |
Cause
| Cause | CORROSION FAILURE |
| Subcause | INTERNAL CORROSION |
Casualties
| Fatalities | 0 |
| Injuries | 0 |
Costs
| Property Damage | $4,825 |
| Emergency Response | $0 |
| Other Costs | $0 |
Location Map
Incident Narrative
"AT APPROXIMATELY 08:39 ON 02/25/2013, OUR KINDER MORGAN HOUSTON CONTROL CENTER'S (HCC) CONTROLLER, RECEIVED A HIGH STATE GAS DETECTION ALARM FROM OUR CYPRESS/SPINDLETOP PUMP STATION UNIT P2B. AT 08:45 HCC MADE CONTACT WITH THE WITH A KM FIELD EMPLOYEE WHO WAS DISPATCHED TO THE LOCATION TO INVESTIGATE THE ALARM. UPON ARRIVAL THE EMPLOYEE OBSERVED AN ICE BALL IN THE AREA OF UNIT 2 AND INFORMED THE HCC CONTROLLER WHO SUBSEQUENTLY SHUT DOWN UNIT P2B AT 10:11. UPON FURTHER INVESTIGATION FIELD PERSONNEL IDENTIFIED A SMALL PINHOLE ON PUMPING UNIT P2B'SCYCLONE SEAL FLUSH SEPARATOR. THIS COMPONENT WAS REMOVED FOR ADDITIONAL ASSESSMENT AND REPLACEMENT. WHEN REMOVED IT WAS DISCOVERED THAT INTERNAL EROSION HAD OCCURRED ON THE TAPERED EXIT END OF THE SEPARATOR. THIS COMPONENT WAS REPLACED AND THE UNIT RESTARTED. IN ADDITION AS PART OF OUR INVESTIGATION OF OUR HCC CONTROLLER'S ACTIONS TO THIS EVENT, IT WAS DETERMINED THAT WE HAD AN OPERATOR ERROR IN WHICH THE CONTROLLER UTILIZED THE INCORRECT PROCEDURE TO RESPOND TO THE INITIAL HIGH STATE GAS DETECTION ALARM. THIS OPERATOR ERROR DID NOT CAUSE THE ACCIDENT BUT CONTRIBUTED TO THE TOTAL VOLUME OF PRODUCT RELEASE UNINTENTIONALLY."
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.