Other Hazards

Explosions, corrosion, leaks, and other hazards in other pipelines (see also Spectra Safety Violations).

Williams Company

2014-04-23: Williams explosion and fire, Opal, WY
2014-04-05: Williams Oak Grove explosion in Marshall County, WV
2014-03-31: Williams fire and explosion near Plymouth, WA
2014-01-10: three-month Williams Co. methane leak on Suavie Island, Oregon
2012-10-26: PHMSA Final Order for a civil penalty of $74,300 to Mr. Larry Hjalmarson, VP Safety, Environment & Integrity, Transcontinental Gas Pipe Line Company, LLC.,

The Notice alleged that Respondent violated 49 C.F.R. §193.2801 by failing to provide and maintain fire protection at its LNG facility at Carlstadt, New Jersey (Facility),…
The Notice alleged that Respondent violated 49 C.F.R. §193.2365(d) by failing to inspect each component protected from atmospheric corrosion at intervals not exceeding 3 years…
2012-09-25: PHMSA Corrective Action Order,
…to take necessary corrective action to protect the public, property, and the environment from potential hazards associated with a failure involving the Williams Transco Pipe Line (TPL) interstate natural gas pipeline system.
2011-12-03: A 36-inch pipeline blews up in Alabama: Williams Transco, the pipeline Sabal Trail wants to connect to, in Marengo County, Alabama.
2008-11-14: Williams Transco explosion in Appomattox Virginia,
a large fireball and resulting in a 37-foot wide, 15-foot deep crater and a burn zone approximately 1125 feet in diameter
Owner of PA Natural Gas Facility that Exploded Has Lengthy Record of Pipeline Safety Violations. A long list of safety violations by Williams Co., by Natural Gas Watch.
The Compliance and Safety Records of Williams (WMB), Williams Partners L.P. (WPZ), Williams Midstream. A PDF with sources of Williams safety problems, by Kentuckians for the Commonwealth.

Florida Gas Transmission (FGT)

2012-08-15: Pipeline subsidence is Force Majeure —Florida Gas Transmission: Force Majeure, or an act of God, in other words “not our fault”, that’s what a methane pipeline company calls the 25-acre sinkhole in Assumption Parish, Louisiana. The same thing could happen in the soft limestone underlying all of Florida and south Georgia that contains our Floridan Aquifer, the source of our drinking water.
2012-06-27: Giant fireball from 4-inch pipeline in Gilchrist County,
A high-pressure natural gas pipeline exploded into a gigantic fireball and 30-foot-high flames in Gilchrist County on Tuesday night after a tree fell and ruptured the line, authorities said.

And that was only a 4-inch pipeline. Sabal Trail wants to put in a 36-inch line, for 81 times the gas.
2009-05-04: Methane pipeline blew up onto Florida Turnpike next to high school. This was the smallest of three pipelines between I-95 and the Florida Turnpike run by Florida Gas Transmission (FGT), one of the two pipelines FPL requires Sabal Trail to connect to.

Panhandle Eastern Pipe Line (PEPL)

Parent company of FGT.

2014-10-13: Panhandle Eastern Pipe Line explosion, Centerview, MO,

A third explosion in Missouri on Panhandle Eastern’s 200 Line in six years. Panhandle is the parent company of Florida Gas Transmission (FGT), famous for throwing a pipe across the Florida Turnpike in 2009, near a high school.
2013-11-29: 300-foot fireball near Hughesville, MO, Panhandle Eastern Pipeline,

“The most intense, scared feeling I’ve ever felt in my life.”
2008-08-25: Pilot Grove, MO PEPL explosion,

Not in a High Consequence Area (HCA)? Then a pipeline explosion may not even rate pictures on the news, even if your house or field or forest or river is what explodes.

Lots of additions from Protect our community from Sabal Trail —Beacon Baptist Church to Albany Mayor Hubbard.

2014-06-26: 150-foot flames from methane pipeline explosion in east Texas
2014-06-04: Contractor being sued for Ewing explosion to build Transco pipeline in Princeton, Montgomery, By Nicole Mulvaney/The Times of Trenton

The same contractor being sued by the relatives of a woman who died in the Ewing gas explosion in March has been hired to construct a 42-inch Transco gas pipeline proposed in Princeton and Montgomery — and residents “don’t trust their safety culture.”

The Princeton Ridge Coalition, a residents group concerned about the environmental and safety aspects of the pipeline project, met tonight with Mayor Liz Lempert and town engineer Bob Kiser to update the public — about 25 members in attendance — about the Williams company’s latest construction plans filed earlier this month, which calls for the hiring of contractor Henkels & McCoy. No representatives from Williams were present at the meeting.
2014-05-01: Methane explosion in Escambia County Jail in Pensacola, FL
2014-03-06: Woman identified in last week’s Ewing, NJ gas explosion that destroyed dozens of homes,

It all began around 11:45 a.m. when utility company PSE&G got a call from contractor Henkels and McCoy that a worker had damaged a gas line while working on an electrical problem.
2014-03-05: Ewing Twp Mercer Co. NJ Gas Explosion 900′ from Major Gas Transmission Line, by Bill Huston on Bill Huston’s Blog,

The gas explosion in Ewing Twp, Mercer County NJ was less that 1/4 mile from a major gas transmission line, the Williams-Transco.
2014-03-04: Linda Cerritelli identified as resident killed in massive New Jersey explosion that damaged 55 condos, BY NINA GOLGOWSKI , STEPHEN REX BROWN , SASHA GOLDSTEIN NEW YORK DAILY NEWS,
The blast in Ewing Township occurred Tuesday after PSE&G utility workers responded to a report of a smell of gas in the air. Seven workers were injured after there was an ‘ignition’ that sparked the blaze. Cerritelli, 62, lived in the home that was leveled at the condo complex on Crockett Lane.
2014-02-20: Chamblee, Georgia opposes a methane pipeline
2014-02-14: Gas line ruptures under Raritan River
2014-02-13: MASSIVE BLAST in KY-60 foot crater-3 houses two barns destroyed, 30 foot section of 30″ pipe thrown 300 feet
2014-02-11: Chevron Nat’l Gas Well in PA Blows -One Person Missing One Injuured, So Far
2014-01-25: Yet another fireball: TransCanada, Otterburne, Manitoba. The entire area was evacuated while the fire burned for more than 12 hours.
2014-01-19: Even many FPL allies oppose new methane pipelines
Georgia pipeline safety record worse than in Florida
2013-11-04: Gas pipeline explosion evacuates Texas town
2013-10-08: Natural gas pipeline exploded in Oklahoma; seen in two other states 2013 (October 8) Natural gas pipeline exploded near Rosston, Oklahoma.
2013-08-23: AGL pipeline station in Atlanta leaking, eroding, substandard construction
2013-08-20: Natural gas pipeline exploded near Kiowa Southwest Oklahoma. Which appears to be in the Woodford Shale region where FPL is fracking for methane.
2012-12-12: a 20 inch transmission line exploded in Kanawha County, West Virginia which obliterated an 800 ft section of I-77, leveled four houses and impacted 40 families.
2010-09-09: A 30 inch natural gas pipeline exploded in San Bruno, California killing 8 people—eye witnesses reported an initial blast produced a wall of fire over 1000 feet high. [And PG&E demanded a compliant judge, resulting in one CPUC and three PG&E officials fired or resigned. -jsq]
2010-07-05, Thomson, GA: My son was killed in a pipeline explosion –Paul W. McCorkle,

My son was killed in a pipeline explosion 7-5-10. There are many old lines that are only a few inches in the ground, because of years because of top cover erosion. A shallow covered gas line is more dangerous than an exposed one!!! This was the case of my accident. After the accident, several lines in my immediate area were found to be totally exposed!!! What about the ones that are not covered to the proper depth and are seldom inspected. The federal pipeline administration is a joke. They have no idea how to do their own investigation, the rely on the pipeline companies to tell them what happened or what to do. As it has been said, THE PIPELINE COMPANIES ARE FUNDING TO MUCH MONEY TO THE AGENCIES THAT REGULATE THEM.

Paul W. McCorkle
2000-08-20: a 30 inch pipeline in New Mexico exploded killing 5 adults, 5 children and left 2 people in critical condition. The explosion left a crater 86 feet long 46 feet wide and 20 feet deep. It cost El Paso Natural Gas Company $100M in fines and improvements
1999-06-10: a pipeline in Bellingham, Washington ruptured resulting in 3 deaths—the fire burned for 5 days.
1992-04-07: Brenham, Texas, and the highly dangerous character of gas and its tendency to escape,
Therefore, in view of the highly dangerous character of gas and its tendency to escape, a gas company must use a degree of care to prevent damage commensurate to the danger which it is its duty to avoid.
—U.S. Supreme Court