Texas Eastern Transmission Corporation Natural Gas Pipeline Explosion and Fire
Encyclopedia
The Texas Eastern Transmission Corporation Natural Gas Pipeline Explosion and Fire occurred in Edison
, New Jersey
on March 23, 1994 where a 36" diameter natural gas
pipeline broke and exploded into flames next to the Durham Woods apartment complex along New Durham Road at its junction with Interstate 287
. The cause of this breakage was given by the NTSB as mechanical damage. The resulting fire destroyed or severely damaged 14 of the apartment buildings. Over 1,500 apartment residents were evacuated, 100 residents were left homeless, and one death occurred from a heart attack suffered by Sandra Snyder, who was unable to summon emergency workers "amid the chaos." Because the fire occurred so close to the Durham Woods complex, residents in the area also refer to it as the Durham Woods fire.
(NTSB) investigation found a gouge in the pipe, probably caused by excavation equipment years earlier; in combination with brittle pipe material and excessive operating pressures likely led to the rupture. NTSB also found fault with the lack of automatic or remote-controlled shutoff valves: the manual valves were difficult to reach and close, preventing operators from promptly cutting off gas that fueled the fire. Also, NTSB found that Texas Eastern failed to adequately monitor excavation activity on its right of way.
Edison, New Jersey
Edison Township is a township in Middlesex County, New Jersey. What is now Edison Township was originally incorporated as Raritan Township by an Act of the New Jersey Legislature on March 17, 1870, from portions of both Piscataway Township and Woodbridge Township...
, New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
on March 23, 1994 where a 36" diameter natural gas
Natural gas
Natural gas is a naturally occurring gas mixture consisting primarily of methane, typically with 0–20% higher hydrocarbons . It is found associated with other hydrocarbon fuel, in coal beds, as methane clathrates, and is an important fuel source and a major feedstock for fertilizers.Most natural...
pipeline broke and exploded into flames next to the Durham Woods apartment complex along New Durham Road at its junction with Interstate 287
Interstate 287
Interstate 287 is an auxiliary Interstate Highway in the U.S. states of New Jersey and New York. It is a partial beltway around New York City, serving the northern half of New Jersey and the counties of Rockland and Westchester in New York...
. The cause of this breakage was given by the NTSB as mechanical damage. The resulting fire destroyed or severely damaged 14 of the apartment buildings. Over 1,500 apartment residents were evacuated, 100 residents were left homeless, and one death occurred from a heart attack suffered by Sandra Snyder, who was unable to summon emergency workers "amid the chaos." Because the fire occurred so close to the Durham Woods complex, residents in the area also refer to it as the Durham Woods fire.
NTSB
The National Transportation Safety BoardNational Transportation Safety Board
The National Transportation Safety Board is an independent U.S. government investigative agency responsible for civil transportation accident investigation. In this role, the NTSB investigates and reports on aviation accidents and incidents, certain types of highway crashes, ship and marine...
(NTSB) investigation found a gouge in the pipe, probably caused by excavation equipment years earlier; in combination with brittle pipe material and excessive operating pressures likely led to the rupture. NTSB also found fault with the lack of automatic or remote-controlled shutoff valves: the manual valves were difficult to reach and close, preventing operators from promptly cutting off gas that fueled the fire. Also, NTSB found that Texas Eastern failed to adequately monitor excavation activity on its right of way.
"One call" system
In response to the fire, New Jersey passed regulations requiring excavators to call a telephone hotline prior to digging so that pipeline companies can mark the precise locations of their pipes on the dig site. By 1996, the "one call" concept became an accepted national practice, although New Jersey lawmakers continued to call for tougher federal laws on pipeline safety.Tenants' lawsuits
Following the fire, over 2,000 tenants of Durham Woods and nearby residences sued Texas Eastern and 29 other defendants, including the township, Durham Woods' landlord, and the excavator who cracked the pipeline. By 1997, over half of these suits had been settled, most for "$25,000 or less," but with $585,000 going to Sandra Snyder's estate. By 2000, Texas Eastern had paid "nearly $65 million" in settlements.Further reading
- New York Times; March 27, 1994, "Federal investigators found evidence today that a rupture in a gas pipeline that touched off a powerful explosion at an apartment complex here may have been caused by repeated damage to the pipeline from construction equipment. After searching a jagged crater carved by the blast near Durham Woods apartments, ..."
- New York Times; March 30, 1994, The lawyer for an asphalt plant situated next to a natural gas pipeline that ruptured and exploded here last Wednesday said today that the plant's current operators had not done any digging on the property in the 10 years they owned it. The lawyer, Vincent Gentile, said the asphalt ..."
- "Gas Explosion Settlements", WRNN-TV, Sept. 29, 1997
- Home News TribuneHome News TribuneHome News Tribune is a newspaper of New Jersey, serving the Middlesex County area of Central Jersey. The paper has an average daily weekday circulation of about 49,000. The newspaper is the result of a mid 1990s combination of The Home News of East Brunswick and The News Tribune of Woodbridge...
; June 17, 2000, "Houston-based Texas Eastern Transmission Corp. has paid nearly $65 million to settle residents' lawsuits." - "A decade later, legacy of Edison blast persists", Edison-Metuchen Sentinel, Mar. 31, 2004
External links
- NTSB Report Reconsideration
- NTSB Report
- Edison, N.J. Pipeline Explosion & MCI, an hour-by-hour narrative by EMTEmergency medical technicianEmergency Medical Technician or Ambulance Technician are terms used in some countries to denote a healthcare provider of emergency medical services...
Daniel J. Januseski - Edison Natural Gas Explosion Video
- Durham Woods Apartments
- Texas Eastern Transmission (subsidiary of Duke EnergyDuke EnergyDuke Energy , headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, is an energy company with assets in the United States, Canada and Latin America.-Overview:...
) - One Call Systems information from APIAmerican Petroleum InstituteThe American Petroleum Institute, commonly referred to as API, is the largest U.S trade association for the oil and natural gas industry...
/AOPL - Fire Engineering article