Incident details
Operator, cause, commodity and consequences with raw source fields.
GD incident on 2010-08-11 — NM
Operator
New Mexico Gas Company
Cause
Other Incident Cause
Commodity
Natural Gas
Program
GD
Damage and Injuries
0 fatalities
0 injuries
Property damage (nominal)
$9,200
Incident datetime
2010-08-11 17:45
Report number
Location
NM, BERNALILLO
Narrative
A contractor working for the local electric company exposed nmgc's 6in plastic mainline, electrical lines, phone lines and cable lines to perform work on the electrical system on the westside of abq. The trench was approx. 6'dx6'wx40'l and the main was exposed approx. 2.5' off the ground and spanned the length of the trench. On aug. 11, 2010, nmgc was notified of a fire at this location. It is unknown how gas was released from the main or how ignition occurred. There appeared to be no active excavation activities at the time of the incident. The trench was open for at least 6 days, if not longer. There was an electrical fault that occured in this area on the afternoon of the fire but it is inconclusive whether this was a factor in the release of gas and subsequent ignition. All facilities in the trench melted and a backhoe was burned (totalled). Nmgc performed a barhole survey upstream and downstream of the leak and no gas was detected. Nmgc worked with the nm pipeline safety bureau on the investigation. There is no conclusive evidence on what caused the release of gas and subsequent ignition. Possible causes include mechanical damage to the pipeline, vandalism, electrical malfunction or a combination of these scenarios.
Detailed record list
Occurred At
2010-08-11 17:45:00
Year
2010
Report Received Date
2010-09-09 00:00:00
Iyear
2010.0
Report Number
20100069.0
Supplemental Number
15640.0
Report Type
Supplemental Final
Operator Id
6141
Name
New Mexico Gas Company
Operator Street Address
7120 Wyoming Blvd. Ne. Ste 20
Operator City Name
Albuquerque
Operator State Abbreviation
NM
Operator Postal Code
87109
Local Datetime
2010-08-11 17:45:00
Location Street Address
Intersection Of Squaw Rd. Nw And Calle Nortena
Location City Name
Albuquerque
Location County Name
Bernalillo
Location State Abbreviation
NM
Location Postal Code
87114
Location Latitude
35.179613
Location Longitude
-106.682288
Nrc Rpt Datetime
2010-08-11 19:28:00
Nrc Rpt Num
950686
Commodity Released Type
Natural Gas
Unintentional Release
653.0
Fatality Ind
No
Fatal
0
Injury Ind
No
Injure
0
Ignite Ind
Yes
Explode Ind
No
Num Pub Evacuated
0.0
Incident Identified Datetime
2010-08-11 17:45:00
On Site Datetime
2010-08-11 18:01:00
Federal
No
Location Type
Public Property
Incident Area Type
Aboveground
Incident Area Subtype
In Or Spanning An Open Ditch
Crossing
No
Pipe Facility Type
Privately Owned
System Part Involved
Main
Installation Year
2007.0
Pipe Diameter
6.625
Pipe Specification
Astm D2513
Pipe Manufacturer
Performance
Material Involved
Plastic
Plastic Type
Polyethylene (Pe)
Wt Plastic
0.602
Material Pe Pipe Code
3408
Release Type
Leak
Leak Type
Other
Leak Type Other
Pipe Melted
Class Location Type
Class 3 Location
Est Cost Oper Paid
0.0
Est Cost Prop Damage
9200.0
Est Cost Emergency
570.0
Est Cost Other
105000.0
Est Cost Other Details
$75,000 - Cont.r Backhoe $15,000 - Elec. Co. $15,000 - Phone Co.+ Cable Co.
Est Cost Unintentional Release
3224.0
Prpty
117994.0
Commercial Affected
0.0
Industrial Affected
0.0
Residences Affected
12.0
Accident Psig
56.0
Normal Psig
56.0
Mop Psig
56.0
Accident Pressure
Pressure Did Not Exceed Maop
Scada In Place Ind
No
Accident Identifier
Notification From Emergency Responder
Investigation Status
No, the operator did not find that an investigation of the controller(s) actions or control room issues was necessary due to: (provide an explanation for why the operator did not investigate)
Investigation Status Details
Controller actions or control room issues were not involved in the incident.
Employee Drug Test Ind
No
Contractor Drug Test Ind
No
Cause
Other Incident Cause
Cause Details
Unknown
Other Type
Unknown
Unknown Subtype
Investigation Complete, Cause Of Incident Unknown
Preparer Name
G*** G* R*****
Preparer Title
Manager Dot Pipeline Safety Compliance
Preparer Email
G**********@n****.com
Preparer Telephone
505-697-3636
Preparer Fax
505-697-4481
Authorizer Name
E* K****
Authorizer Title
Vp Technical Services
Authorizer Telephone
505-697-3303
Authorizer Email
E*******@n****.com
Narrative
A contractor working for the local electric company exposed nmgc's 6in plastic mainline, electrical lines, phone lines and cable lines to perform work on the electrical system on the westside of abq. The trench was approx. 6'dx6'wx40'l and the main was exposed approx. 2.5' off the ground and spanned the length of the trench. On aug. 11, 2010, nmgc was notified of a fire at this location. It is unknown how gas was released from the main or how ignition occurred. There appeared to be no active excavation activities at the time of the incident. The trench was open for at least 6 days, if not longer. There was an electrical fault that occured in this area on the afternoon of the fire but it is inconclusive whether this was a factor in the release of gas and subsequent ignition. All facilities in the trench melted and a backhoe was burned (totalled). Nmgc performed a barhole survey upstream and downstream of the leak and no gas was detected. Nmgc worked with the nm pipeline safety bureau on the investigation. There is no conclusive evidence on what caused the release of gas and subsequent ignition. Possible causes include mechanical damage to the pipeline, vandalism, electrical malfunction or a combination of these scenarios.
| Occurred At | 2010-08-11 17:45:00 |
|---|---|
| Year | 2010 |
| Report Received Date | 2010-09-09 00:00:00 |
| Iyear | 2010.0 |
| Report Number | 20100069.0 |
| Supplemental Number | 15640.0 |
| Report Type | Supplemental Final |
| Operator Id | 6141 PHMSA Enforcement |
| Name | New Mexico Gas Company |
| Operator Street Address | 7120 Wyoming Blvd. Ne. Ste 20 |
| Operator City Name | Albuquerque |
| Operator State Abbreviation | NM |
| Operator Postal Code | 87109 |
| Local Datetime | 2010-08-11 17:45:00 |
| Location Street Address | Intersection Of Squaw Rd. Nw And Calle Nortena |
| Location City Name | Albuquerque |
| Location County Name | Bernalillo |
| Location State Abbreviation | NM |
| Location Postal Code | 87114 |
| Location Latitude | 35.179613 Google Maps OpenStreetMap |
| Location Longitude | -106.682288 Google Maps OpenStreetMap |
| Nrc Rpt Datetime | 2010-08-11 19:28:00 |
| Nrc Rpt Num | 950686 NRC Report How to search |
| Commodity Released Type | Natural Gas |
| Unintentional Release | 653.0 |
| Fatality Ind | No |
| Fatal | 0 |
| Injury Ind | No |
| Injure | 0 |
| Ignite Ind | Yes |
| Explode Ind | No |
| Num Pub Evacuated | 0.0 |
| Incident Identified Datetime | 2010-08-11 17:45:00 |
| On Site Datetime | 2010-08-11 18:01:00 |
| Federal | No |
| Location Type | Public Property |
| Incident Area Type | Aboveground |
| Incident Area Subtype | In Or Spanning An Open Ditch |
| Crossing | No |
| Pipe Facility Type | Privately Owned |
| System Part Involved | Main |
| Installation Year | 2007.0 |
| Pipe Diameter | 6.625 |
| Pipe Specification | Astm D2513 |
| Pipe Manufacturer | Performance |
| Material Involved | Plastic |
| Plastic Type | Polyethylene (Pe) |
| Wt Plastic | 0.602 |
| Material Pe Pipe Code | 3408 |
| Release Type | Leak |
| Leak Type | Other |
| Leak Type Other | Pipe Melted |
| Class Location Type | Class 3 Location |
| Est Cost Oper Paid | 0.0 |
| Est Cost Prop Damage | 9200.0 |
| Est Cost Emergency | 570.0 |
| Est Cost Other | 105000.0 |
| Est Cost Other Details | $75,000 - Cont.r Backhoe $15,000 - Elec. Co. $15,000 - Phone Co.+ Cable Co. |
| Est Cost Unintentional Release | 3224.0 |
| Prpty | 117994.0 |
| Commercial Affected | 0.0 |
| Industrial Affected | 0.0 |
| Residences Affected | 12.0 |
| Accident Psig | 56.0 |
| Normal Psig | 56.0 |
| Mop Psig | 56.0 |
| Accident Pressure | Pressure Did Not Exceed Maop |
| Scada In Place Ind | No |
| Accident Identifier | Notification From Emergency Responder |
| Investigation Status | No, the operator did not find that an investigation of the controller(s) actions or control room issues was necessary due to: (provide an explanation for why the operator did not investigate) |
| Investigation Status Details | Controller actions or control room issues were not involved in the incident. |
| Employee Drug Test Ind | No |
| Contractor Drug Test Ind | No |
| Cause | Other Incident Cause |
| Cause Details | Unknown |
| Other Type | Unknown |
| Unknown Subtype | Investigation Complete, Cause Of Incident Unknown |
| Preparer Name | G*** G* R***** |
| Preparer Title | Manager Dot Pipeline Safety Compliance |
| Preparer Email | G**********@n****.com |
| Preparer Telephone | 505-697-3636 |
| Preparer Fax | 505-697-4481 |
| Authorizer Name | E* K**** |
| Authorizer Title | Vp Technical Services |
| Authorizer Telephone | 505-697-3303 |
| Authorizer Email | E*******@n****.com |
| Narrative | A contractor working for the local electric company exposed nmgc's 6in plastic mainline, electrical lines, phone lines and cable lines to perform work on the electrical system on the westside of abq. The trench was approx. 6'dx6'wx40'l and the main was exposed approx. 2.5' off the ground and spanned the length of the trench. On aug. 11, 2010, nmgc was notified of a fire at this location. It is unknown how gas was released from the main or how ignition occurred. There appeared to be no active excavation activities at the time of the incident. The trench was open for at least 6 days, if not longer. There was an electrical fault that occured in this area on the afternoon of the fire but it is inconclusive whether this was a factor in the release of gas and subsequent ignition. All facilities in the trench melted and a backhoe was burned (totalled). Nmgc performed a barhole survey upstream and downstream of the leak and no gas was detected. Nmgc worked with the nm pipeline safety bureau on the investigation. There is no conclusive evidence on what caused the release of gas and subsequent ignition. Possible causes include mechanical damage to the pipeline, vandalism, electrical malfunction or a combination of these scenarios. |
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