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Significant Pipeline Incidents By Cause

This report is a sub-report of the PHMSA Significant Pipeline Incidents report. As such, it represents Significant Incidents (A) only over the time period and pipeline system specified.

The data source for this table is the PHMSA Filtered Incident Files. (1) (2) (3)

More Pipeline Incidents and Mileage Reports are available.

Important Update: As of October 2009, these reports were modified to exclude Gas Distribution incidents where fire/explosion was the primary cause of failure, such as a house fire that subsequently resulted in - but was not caused by - a distribution line failure (B)
National All Pipeline Systems: Significant Incident Details: 1989
Reported Cause of Incident (C) Number (B) % Fatalities Injuries Property Damage (D) (E) % of Property Damage
CORROSION
VARIOUS 41 14.8% 3 2 $3,574,658 6.4%
Sub Total 41 14.8% 3 2 $3,574,658 6.4%
EXCAVATION DAMAGE
VARIOUS 92 33.2% 24 82 $18,097,199 32.4%
Sub Total 92 33.2% 24 82 $18,097,199 32.4%
INCORRECT OPERATION
VARIOUS 17 6.1% 0 14 $889,618 1.6%
Sub Total 17 6.1% 0 14 $889,618 1.6%
MAT'L/WELD/EQUIP FAILURE
VARIOUS 32 11.5% 2 4 $6,254,369 11.2%
Sub Total 32 11.5% 2 4 $6,254,369 11.2%
NATURAL FORCE DAMAGE
VARIOUS 19 6.8% 6 8 $3,370,884 6.0%
Sub Total 19 6.8% 6 8 $3,370,884 6.0%
ALL OTHER CAUSES
VARIOUS 76 27.4% 10 47 $23,535,040 42.2%
Sub Total 76 27.4% 10 47 $23,535,040 42.2%
Totals 277 100.0% 45 157 $55,721,771 100.0%
Export Table
National, All Pipeline Systems, 1989
National Hazardous Liquid: Significant Incident Details: 1989
Reported Cause of Incident (C) Number % Fatalities Injuries Property Damage (D) (E) % of Property Damage
CORROSION
VARIOUS 27 19.8% 0 0 $751,758 5.7%
Sub Total 27 19.8% 0 0 $751,758 5.7%
EXCAVATION DAMAGE
VARIOUS 41 30.1% 2 32 $3,695,376 28.2%
Sub Total 41 30.1% 2 32 $3,695,376 28.2%
INCORRECT OPERATION
VARIOUS 11 8.0% 0 3 $322,131 2.4%
Sub Total 11 8.0% 0 3 $322,131 2.4%
MAT'L/WELD/EQUIP FAILURE
VARIOUS 23 16.9% 0 0 $4,643,636 35.4%
Sub Total 23 16.9% 0 0 $4,643,636 35.4%
NATURAL FORCE DAMAGE
VARIOUS 3 2.2% 0 0 $368,640 2.8%
Sub Total 3 2.2% 0 0 $368,640 2.8%
ALL OTHER CAUSES
VARIOUS 31 22.7% 1 3 $3,301,352 25.2%
Sub Total 31 22.7% 1 3 $3,301,352 25.2%
Totals 136 100.0% 3 38 $13,082,894 100.0%
Export Table
National, Hazardous Liquid, 1989
National Hazardous Liquid Onshore: Significant Incident Details: 1989
Reported Cause of Incident (C) Number % Fatalities Injuries Property Damage (D) (E) % of Property Damage
CORROSION
VARIOUS 27 19.8% 0 0 $751,758 5.7%
Sub Total 27 19.8% 0 0 $751,758 5.7%
EXCAVATION DAMAGE
VARIOUS 40 29.4% 2 32 $2,917,996 22.3%
Sub Total 40 29.4% 2 32 $2,917,996 22.3%
INCORRECT OPERATION
VARIOUS 11 8.0% 0 3 $322,131 2.4%
Sub Total 11 8.0% 0 3 $322,131 2.4%
MAT'L/WELD/EQUIP FAILURE
VARIOUS 23 16.9% 0 0 $4,643,636 35.4%
Sub Total 23 16.9% 0 0 $4,643,636 35.4%
NATURAL FORCE DAMAGE
VARIOUS 3 2.2% 0 0 $368,640 2.8%
Sub Total 3 2.2% 0 0 $368,640 2.8%
ALL OTHER CAUSES
VARIOUS 31 22.7% 1 3 $3,301,352 25.2%
Sub Total 31 22.7% 1 3 $3,301,352 25.2%
Totals 135 99.2% 3 38 $12,305,514 94.0%
Export Table
National, Hazardous Liquid Onshore, 1989
National Hazardous Liquid Offshore: Significant Incident Details: 1989
Reported Cause of Incident (C) Number % Fatalities Injuries Property Damage (D) (E) % of Property Damage
EXCAVATION DAMAGE
VARIOUS 1 0.7% 0 0 $777,380 5.9%
Sub Total 1 0.7% 0 0 $777,380 5.9%
Totals 1 0.7% 0 0 $777,380 5.9%
Export Table
National, Hazardous Liquid Offshore, 1989
National Gas Transmission: Significant Incident Details: 1989
Reported Cause of Incident (C) Number % Fatalities Injuries Property Damage (D) (E) % of Property Damage
CORROSION
VARIOUS 7 17.5% 0 0 $1,481,687 5.3%
Sub Total 7 17.5% 0 0 $1,481,687 5.3%
EXCAVATION DAMAGE
VARIOUS 15 37.5% 20 20 $10,473,649 37.6%
Sub Total 15 37.5% 20 20 $10,473,649 37.6%
MAT'L/WELD/EQUIP FAILURE
VARIOUS 5 12.5% 1 0 $1,260,911 4.5%
Sub Total 5 12.5% 1 0 $1,260,911 4.5%
ALL OTHER CAUSES
VARIOUS 13 32.5% 1 8 $14,591,459 52.4%
Sub Total 13 32.5% 1 8 $14,591,459 52.4%
Totals 40 100.0% 22 28 $27,807,708 100.0%
Export Table
National, Gas Transmission, 1989
National Gas Transmission Onshore: Significant Incident Details: 1989
Reported Cause of Incident (C) Number % Fatalities Injuries Property Damage (D) (E) % of Property Damage
CORROSION
VARIOUS 3 7.5% 0 0 $366,923 1.3%
Sub Total 3 7.5% 0 0 $366,923 1.3%
EXCAVATION DAMAGE
VARIOUS 11 27.5% 2 7 $1,810,519 6.5%
Sub Total 11 27.5% 2 7 $1,810,519 6.5%
MAT'L/WELD/EQUIP FAILURE
VARIOUS 3 7.5% 1 0 $475,756 1.7%
Sub Total 3 7.5% 1 0 $475,756 1.7%
ALL OTHER CAUSES
VARIOUS 12 30.0% 1 8 $14,280,507 51.3%
Sub Total 12 30.0% 1 8 $14,280,507 51.3%
Totals 29 72.5% 4 15 $16,933,707 60.9%
Export Table
National, Gas Transmission Onshore, 1989
National Gas Transmission Offshore: Significant Incident Details: 1989
Reported Cause of Incident (C) Number % Fatalities Injuries Property Damage (D) (E) % of Property Damage
CORROSION
VARIOUS 4 10.0% 0 0 $1,114,763 4.0%
Sub Total 4 10.0% 0 0 $1,114,763 4.0%
EXCAVATION DAMAGE
VARIOUS 4 10.0% 18 13 $8,663,129 31.1%
Sub Total 4 10.0% 18 13 $8,663,129 31.1%
MAT'L/WELD/EQUIP FAILURE
VARIOUS 2 5.0% 0 0 $785,154 2.8%
Sub Total 2 5.0% 0 0 $785,154 2.8%
ALL OTHER CAUSES
VARIOUS 1 2.5% 0 0 $310,952 1.1%
Sub Total 1 2.5% 0 0 $310,952 1.1%
Totals 11 27.5% 18 13 $10,874,000 39.1%
Export Table
National, Gas Transmission Offshore, 1989
National Gas Gathering: Significant Incident Details: 1989
Reported Cause of Incident (C) Number % Fatalities Injuries Property Damage (D) (E) % of Property Damage
CORROSION
VARIOUS 2 50.0% 0 0 $908,212 34.6%
Sub Total 2 50.0% 0 0 $908,212 34.6%
EXCAVATION DAMAGE
VARIOUS 1 25.0% 0 0 $777,380 29.6%
Sub Total 1 25.0% 0 0 $777,380 29.6%
ALL OTHER CAUSES
VARIOUS 1 25.0% 0 0 $932,856 35.6%
Sub Total 1 25.0% 0 0 $932,856 35.6%
Totals 4 100.0% 0 0 $2,618,449 100.0%
Export Table
National, Gas Gathering, 1989
National Gas Distribution: Significant Incident Details: 1989
Reported Cause of Incident (C) Number (B) % Fatalities Injuries Property Damage (D) (E) % of Property Damage
CORROSION
VARIOUS 5 5.1% 3 2 $433,001 3.5%
Sub Total 5 5.1% 3 2 $433,001 3.5%
EXCAVATION DAMAGE
VARIOUS 35 36.0% 2 30 $3,150,792 25.8%
Sub Total 35 36.0% 2 30 $3,150,792 25.8%
INCORRECT OPERATION
VARIOUS 6 6.1% 0 11 $567,487 4.6%
Sub Total 6 6.1% 0 11 $567,487 4.6%
MAT'L/WELD/EQUIP FAILURE
VARIOUS 4 4.1% 1 4 $349,821 2.8%
Sub Total 4 4.1% 1 4 $349,821 2.8%
NATURAL FORCE DAMAGE
VARIOUS 16 16.4% 6 8 $3,002,244 24.5%
Sub Total 16 16.4% 6 8 $3,002,244 24.5%
ALL OTHER CAUSES
VARIOUS 31 31.9% 8 36 $4,709,371 38.5%
Sub Total 31 31.9% 8 36 $4,709,371 38.5%
Totals 97 100.0% 20 91 $12,212,718 100.0%
Export Table
National, Gas Distribution, 1989

Notes

  1. Significant Incidents are those incidents reported by pipeline operators with any of the following conditions are met: 1) fatality or injury requiring in-patient hospitalization. 2) $50,000 or more in total costs, measured in 1984 dollars. 3) highly volatile liquid releases of 5 barrels or more or other liquid releases of 50 barrels or more. 4) liquid releases resulting in an unintentional fire or explosion. Note: Significant Incidents include all Serious Incidents. Unless otherwise noted, any counts of Significant Incidents also include Serious Incidents.
  2. Gas Distribution incidents where fire/explosion was the primary cause of failure, such as a house fire that subsequently resulted in - but was not caused by - a distribution line failure are excluded from 2004 onward. This exclusion has not been applied in years prior to 2004 due to difficulty in identifying these types of events with the older report formats.
  3. PHMSA has gathered increasingly targeted incident cause data over time. As such, the available reportable categories of cause (eg: Internal/External Corrosion vs Corrosion in general) have increased over time. This report spans time periods over which the reportable cause categories have changed. The cause categories in this report should be taken as general and not specific for years prior to 2002 for Liquid and Gas Transmission, and prior to 2004 for Gas Distribution.
  4. The costs for incidents prior to 2008 are presented in 2008 dollars. Cost of Gas lost is indexed via the Energy Information Administration, Natural Gas City Gate Prices. All other costs are adjusted via the Bureau of Economic Analysis, Government Printing Office inflation values.
  5. For years 2002 and later, property damage is estimated as the sum of all public and private costs reported in the 30-day incident report. For years prior to 2002, accident report forms did not include a breakdown of public and private costs so property damage for these years is the reported total property damage field in the report. All costs prior to 2008 are expressed in 2008 dollars.
  6. Does not include 1,851 injuries that required medical treatment reported for the October, 1994 accidents that were caused by severe flooding near Houston, Texas.

Sources

  1. PHMSA Hazardous Liquid Flagged Incidents File - October 14, 2009
  2. PHMSA Gas Transmission Flagged Incidents File - October 14, 2009
  3. PHMSA Gas Distribution Flagged Incidents File - October 14, 2009

See Pipeline Incidents and Mileage Reports for more pipeline safety reports.

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