ANOTHER EXPLOSION ON THE TENNESSEE GAS PIPELINE - ANOTHER WELD FAILURE?

23rd November 2011 Gas line explodes near Batesville, Mississippi - probable weld failure

(WMC-TV) - Panola County authorities are investigating what caused a natural gas pipeline explosion and fire near Batesville that forced the evacuation of 20 to 30 families.

There were no injuries or fatalities related to Monday's incident. Authorities allowed the fire from the ruptured Tennessee Gas Pipeline line to burn out overnight. The pipeline is located off Mississippi Highway 6 west of the Tallahatchie River and west of Batesville.

Emergency Management Director Daniel Cole said fire departments from across the county were mobilized but were released Monday night as the fire died.

"It is my understanding the line itself did not rupture," Cole said. "It was a leak."

Cole said families were moved to a community center about two miles away from the fire.

"Twenty minutes into that evacuation the gas found an ignition source and did ignite, and at that point in the time we deployed three fire departments to standby to protect structures that might have been in danger," he said.

Tennessee Gas personnel shut off the supply of gas feeding through the pipeline, allowing the excess gas to burn off.

Tuesday, local officials re-opened State Highway 6, and Macedonia Road, which had to be closed.

Then we have this from a week ago:

16th November 2011 Gas line explodes near Glouster, Ohio, destroys 3 Homes, Barn- CONFIRMED WELD FAILURE

10th Feb 2011, Hanover County, Ohio, a Tennessee Gas pipeline exploded. CONFIRMED WELD FAILURE

Incidentally, after the explosion in the same area on 10th Feb (see pic below) Tennessee Gas were ordered to carry out repairs at a number of sites as follows:

On March 11, 2011, PHMSA issued a Notice of Proposed Safety Order (Notice)1 to Tennessee Gas, alleging that certain segments of Respondent's natural gas pipeline system designated as the Line 200 Pipeline System had conditions that, without corrective measures, would pose a pipeline integrity risk to public safety, property, or the environment. Specifically, the Notice alleged that the conditions causing a February 10, 2011 failure on Line 200-4 in mainline valve section 214 (Line Section 214-4), approximately 2.5 miles southeast ofthe town of Hanoverton, Ohio, and the March 1, 2011 failure on Line 200-1 in mainline valve section 209 (Line Section 209-1), approximately 0.5 miles downstream of the Cambridge Compressor Station 209, demonstrated the presence of integrity risks on those segments of Lines 200-1, 200-2, 200-3, and 200-4 running from Compressor Station 200 to Compressor Station 219, including the Pittsburg Spur (Affected Segments). PHMSA and Tennessee Gas entered into a Consent Agreement that was incorporated by reference into a Consent Order issued on March 31, 2011.2

At the time of the November explosion this work had not been completed. 

And remember, it's not just the immediate impact of an explosion. These pipelines are loaded with PCB's. When PCB's burn they form Dioxins (remember Bhopal?) PCBs are known to cause cancer, birth defects and reproductive harm. PCBs also damage and disrupts hormone activity especially in women, children and older members of the population. 

Columbia Gas Transmission - Superfund site - PCB's and other Contaminants

FYI, most of Columbia Gas Transmission's property in West Virginia constitutes a Superfund site due to high levels of PCB's, Benzene, Toluene, and Xylene and Mercury in adition to various Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons. They were ordered to clean up in 1994, and are still doing it. So much for "Clean Natural Gas".

Details of Columbia Gas Transmission's Superfund Cleanup Status

"Prior to 1976, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) were widely used by industry in lubricating oils for electrical equipment and hydraulic systems because of their exceptional heat transfer characteristics. Portions of Columbia's pipeline, including natural gas compressors, have become contaminated with PCBs. Columbia maintains that these PCBs have been introduced into its pipeline system as a result of interconnections with natural gas transmission pipelines of other companies that used lubricating oil containing PCBS, and that Columbia did not use PCB lubricating oils in its natural gas compressors.

As a result of normal pressure and temperature changes within Columbia's pipeline, constituents contained in natural gas can condense into a liquid form within the pipeline. This liquid, or condensate, may contain, among other things, benzene, toluene, and xylene. The condensate may additionally contain PCB-contaminated lubricants that have entered the pipeline. Condensates must be removed to avoid damage to the gas compressors. Condensate is removed from Columbia's pipeline through numerous liquid removal points at various locations along the pipeline system. The most common type of liquid removal point consists of a liquid trap attached to the pipeline and a length of small-diameter pipe with an above-ground valve, Columbia's pipeline includes approximately 15,000 liquid removal points where condensates are or were removed from the pipeline. Condensate, removed from Columbia's pipeline was disposed by Columbia onto the ground at liquid removal points, stored in aboveground and underground storage tanks, and/or disposed of in trash disposal and burn areas at various locations along the pipeline system. As a result of this practice soils along the pipeline, in the vicinity of the storage tanks, and in the trash disposal and burn areas have become contaminated with, among other things, PCBS, benzene, toluene, and xylene.

There are approximately 3,000 locations along Columbia's pipeline where mercury-filled metering devices are used to measure pipeline flow and pressure. Routine maintenance activities performed on these devices has resulted in drips and spills of mercury from a number of these devices onto the ground in the vicinity of these devices. Soil in the vicinity of these instruments has become contaminated with mercury"