KINDER MORGAN PIPELINES (USA) INC
hazardous_liquid Incident — — November 23, 2010
Incident Information
| Incident Date | November 23, 2010 |
| Operator | KINDER MORGAN PIPELINES (USA) INC |
| Commodity | CRUDE OIL |
| Pipeline Type | hazardous_liquid |
Location
| State | |
| Coordinates | 46.21990, -109.43700 |
Cause
| Cause | EQUIPMENT FAILURE |
| Subcause | OTHER EQUIPMENT FAILURE |
Casualties
| Fatalities | 0 |
| Injuries | 0 |
Costs
| Property Damage | $110,000 |
| Emergency Response | $20,000 |
| Other Costs | $0 |
Location Map
Incident Narrative
ON NOVEMBER 23, 2010 A CRUDE OIL RELEASE OCCURRED AT THE FISH CREEK PUMP STATION ON THE EXPRESS PIPELINE. A COMPANY EMPLOYEE WAS AT THE FACILITY WHEN THE STATION WAS STARTED. HE SAW CRUDE OIL SPRAYING FROM THE MAINLINE CHECK VALVE. HE IMMEDIATELY INVOLKED ESD PROCEDURES THAT SHUT OFF THE PUMPS AND HE CLOSED INCOMING AND OUTGOING VALVES. CRUDE OIL SPREAD FROM THE SITE ON TO ADJACENT GRAZING LAND. IT WAS CONTAINED BY THE TOPOGRAPHY AND SNOW TO AN AREA APPROACHING 2-3 ACRES. THE VOLUME OF THE RELEASE WAS ORIGINLALY ESTIMATED AT 50 BARRELS. UPON FURTHER EVALUATION DURRING CLEAN UP IT WAS REVSIED TO 90 BARRRELS. ALL FREE OIL WAS RECOVERED AND THE CONTAMINATED SOIL EXCAVATED AND DISPOSED OFF SITE. EXTERNAL NOTIFICATIONS WERE MADE TO THE NRC, MONTANA DEPT OF ENV. QUALITY AND THE LEPC FOR WHEATLAND COUNTY, MT. THE PIPELINE RESUMMED NORMAL OPERATIONS WITH IN 32 HOURS OF THE SHUTDOWN. THE RELEASE APPARENTLY RESULTED FROM FAILURE OF THE STUD BOLTS ON THE MINI SLAM ADAPTER ON THE MAINLINE CHECK VALVE.
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.