ENTERPRISE PRODUCTS OPERATING LLC

Incident Narrative

SCADA LOW LOW PRESSURE ALARM AT DOWNSTREAM PUMP STATION ALERTED OPERATION CONTROL (OC). OC SHUT OFF THE UPSTREAM PUMP, CLOSED THE REMOTELY OPERATED VALVE AT THE UPSTREAM PUMP STATION AND NOTIFIED FIELD PERSONNEL OF AN APPARENT LINE FAILURE. SHERIFF DEPARTMENT NOTIFIED OC THAT PIPELINE HAD BEEN HIT BY THIRD PARTY EXCAVATOR. TECHNICIANS WERE DISPATCHED TO CLOSE THE VALVES BETWEEN THE PUMP STATIONS WHILE MONITORING THE RELEASE OF PROPANE PRODUCT. OC NOTIFIED AGENCIES, INCLUDING NRC. MNOPS ARRIVED ON SITE ON 12/10/10. AREA TECHNICIANS CLOSED ADJACENT BLOCK VALVES AND THEN FLARED PRODUCT AND PURGED THE LINE UNTIL THE LINE SEGMENT WAS SAFELY EVACUATED. AS A PRECAUTIONARY MEASURE, PERSONNEL AT 12 ADDRESSES WERE CONTACTED AND ADVISED TO EVACUATE. A PRECISE COUNT OF NUMBER OF PEOPLE EVACUATED WAS NOT MADE BUT CLEARANCE WAS MADE FOR PERSONNEL TO RETURN TO THEIR ADDRESSES THE DAY AFTER THE FAILURE OCCURRED. AFTER THE AREA WAS MADE SAFE, THE LINE WAS EXCAVATED, CUT, AND REPAIRED WITH PRE-TESTED PIPE. THE LINE WAS RETURNED TO SERVICE ON DECEMBER 15, 2010. SCADA LOW LOW PRESSURE ALARM AT DOWNSTREAM PUMP STATION ALERTED OPERATION CONTROL (OC). OC SHUT OFF THE UPSTREAM PUMP, CLOSED THE REMOTELY OPERATED VALVE AT THE UPSTREAM PUMP STATION AND NOTIFIED FIELD PERSONNEL OF AN APPARENT LINE FAILURE. SHERIFF DEPARTMENT NOTIFIED OC THAT PIPELINE HAD BEEN HIT BY THIRD PARTY EXCAVATOR. TECHNICIANS WERE DISPATCHED TO CLOSE THE VALVES BETWEEN THE PUMP STATIONS WHILE MONITORING THE RELEASE OF PROPANE PRODUCT. OC NOTIFIED AGENCIES, INCLUDING NRC. MNOPS ARRIVED ON SITE ON 12/10/10. AREA TECHNICIANS CLOSED ADJACENT BLOCK VALVES AND THEN FLARED PRODUCT AND PURGED THE LINE UNTIL THE LINE SEGMENT WAS SAFELY EVACUATED. AS A PRECAUTIONARY MEASURE, PERSONNEL AT 12 ADDRESSES WERE CONTACTED AND ADVISED TO EVACUATE. A PRECISE COUNT OF NUMBER OF PEOPLE EVACUATED WAS NOT MADE BUT CLEARANCE WAS MADE FOR PERSONNEL TO RETURN TO THEIR ADDRESSES THE DAY AFTER THE FAILURE OCCURRED. AFTER THE AREA WAS MADE SAFE, THE LINE WAS EXCAVATED, CUT, AND REPAIRED WITH PRE-TESTED PIPE. THE LINE WAS RETURNED TO SERVICE ON DECEMBER 15, 2010. UPDATE 8/23/2012: WE RE-INTERVIEWED THE TECHNICIAN WHO MARKED THE LINE AND HE REAFFIRMED THAT HE WAS ABLE TO PROPERLY MARK THE LINE BASED ON THE VISUAL POINTS OF REFERENCE AVAILABLE TO HIM AT THE SITE. THESE VISUAL POINTS OF REFERENCE INCLUDE THE PERMANENT LINE MARKERS ON BOTH SIDES OF THE HIGHWAY AND THE ABANDONED RAILROAD TRACKS. FURTHERMORE, HE HAD USED THE CP TEST STATIONS TO CONNECT THE LINE LOCATOR SIGNAL TRANSPONDER TO THE PIPELINE. GIVEN THE PI IS LOCATED APPROXIMATELY 250' FROM THE PERMANENT PIPELINE MARKER, THE SIGNAL FOR THE LINE LOCATOR WOULD HAVE BEEN STRONG ENOUGH TO PROVIDE AN ACCURATE READING ON THE LOCATION OF THE PIPELINE. WHEN ASKED TO EXPLAIN THE TWO IMPROPERLY PLACED MARKERS, THE LOCATOR AFFIRMS THE MARKERS WERE NOT PLACED BY HIM. A SITE REVIEW OF UNDISTURBED AREAS BY FIELD PERSONNEL CONDUCTING THE INVESTIGATION AND OUR REVIEW OF PHOTOGRAPHY TAKEN DURING THE INVESTIGATION INDICATED THAT THE LOCATOR ACCURATELY AND ADEQUATELY MARKED THE PIPELINES BASED ON THE AVAILABILITY OF POINTS OF REFERENCES NEAR THE PI. DUE TO GROUND DISTURBANCE ASSOCIATED WITH THE EXCAVATION RELATED ACTIVITY AND THE SUBSEQUENT STORM, ORIGINAL MARKINGS IN THE AREA OF THE ACCIDENT COULD NOT BE LOCATED OR ACCURATELY IDENTIFIED AS TO ORIGINAL PLACEMENT. ENTERPRISE IDENTIFIED EVIDENCE OF SOIL PRE-RIPPING IN SEVERAL LOCATIONS IN THE VICINITY OF THE ACCIDENT SITE. THIS PRE-RIPPING ACTIVITY CROSSED BOTH ENTERPRISE PIPELINE MULTIPLE TIMES. IT IS PERCEIVABLE THAT THE PRE-RIPPING WORK COULD HAVE RESULTED IN DISPLACEMENT OF THE ORIGINAL MARKS PLACED BY ENTERPRISE'S LINE LOCATOR. AS A RESULT OF THE REVIEW, THERE IS NOT SUFFICIENT EVIDENCE TO CONCLUDE THAT THE PIPELINE FACILITIES WERE MARKED IMPROPERLY.