COLONIAL PIPELINE CO

hazardous_liquid Incident —

Incident Information

Report Date
OperatorCOLONIAL PIPELINE CO
Commodity—
Pipeline Typehazardous_liquid

Location

State
Coordinates39.36139, -77.03778

Cause

CauseCORROSION FAILURE
Subcause—

Casualties

Fatalities0
Injuries0

Costs

Property Damage
Lost Commodity
Public/Private Damage
Emergency Response
Environmental Remediation
Other Costs

Location Map

Incident Narrative

ON JANUARY 15, 2011 AT 08:20 AN OPERATOR DISCOVERED A DRIP INTO THE CONTAINMENT PIT BELOW THE TANK 1032 STINGER LINE. THE SHELL VALVE FROM THE TANK WAS IMMEDIATELY CLOSED AND THE DRIP SUBSEQUENTLY CEASED. NOTIFICATIONS WERE MADE TO THE LEAD OPERATOR AT 08:30, THE ENVIRONMENTAL SPECIALIST AT 08:36, AND THE OPERATIONS MANAGER AT 08:56. STATE NOTIFICATIONS WERE NOT REQUIRED BECAUSE THE RELEASE OCCURED IN THE MANIFOLD PIT AREA THAT IS SECONDARY CONTAINMENT PER STATE STANDARDS. A COURTESY CALL WAS PLACED TO THE STATE AT 10:48. ONCE THE AREA WAS SAFE FOR ENTRY, THE THERMAL BLANKET WAS REMOVED FROM THE PIPE AND A 3/8"" HOLE WAS IDENTIFED IN THE BOTTOM OF THE STINGER LINE PIPE. FURTHER EXAMINATION REVEALED THE SOURCE OF THE HOLE TO BE INTERNAL CORROSION OF THE PIPE. A CLAMP WAS PLACED ON THE PIPE AND THE SYSTEM WAS RETURNED TO NORMAL OPERATION BY 13:30.

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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