Gas Pipe explosion

Juan_Hong_Loe · Jan 30, 2011

I was going through some old emails and came across these. They are old but cool.

payne97 · Jan 30, 2011

Dam did anybody die

InDaShop · Jan 30, 2011

That was the Williams Pipeline explosion in Appamattox (sp?) Virginia in 2008. Bad pipeline corrosion. I dont think anyone was killed though, I just dont remember and searching on an iPhone sucks.

B Gillespie · Jan 30, 2011

Main reason why we do aerial construction versus underground, I can see what has potential to kill me.

Unmarked gas lines and errors on prints are prevalent in the industry. As cities get more congested, directional boring will increase. Hit a gas line => kaboom.

blacksheep10 · Jan 30, 2011

At least this time it wasn't billed at "somebody was drilling post holes laughing1
Fairly common, about 1 per year for that company alone. The old inspector for them (was over lots of inspectors, he was the head guy) came by the shop as he used to work for Williams pipeline with my boss. Had his laptop and showed up a bunch of blow outs. It is more of a pressure blow off, then it ignites and flames the **** out of everything. It is not like the gas burns in the lines and it pops. Corroded old line.
And Bryan, the 6 or so he showed us weren't from someone hitting them, they're from weak lines. The one where a guy did hit it with his loader didn't go up, it froze frost 5" thick on his loader bucket while it rushed out and converted to low pressure gas, lots of chilling. There were like 40 cows around it sniffing it up, he said they couldn't make themselves walk away.
Hate to be that operator, talk about shitting yourself

jabnasty · Jan 30, 2011

I actually go in and replace alot of old gas lines in texas. You would be suprised how many leaks and 60 year old pipelines are still in use. Theres nothing more fun then welding on a 12'' line while the valves are leaking and spraying fire 10 feet into the air.

FroggF350 · Jan 30, 2011

blacksheep10 said:
At least this time it wasn't billed at "somebody was drilling post holes laughing1

If you are referring to the accident from last year that happened at GA Power, that guy was a good friend of mine and now he is dead. Nothing funny about!!!

InDaShop · Jan 30, 2011

FroggF350 said:
If you are referring to the accident from last year that guy was a good friend of mine and now he is dead. Nothing funny about!!!

**** happens like that ALL THE TIME. Sorry about your buddy, but I doubt Kelly even knows who your buddy was, what accident you are referring to or even when.

Kinda like saying "if you're referring to my buddy who got crabs from the hooker in vegas, nothing funny about it"

Seriously though, tell us the story? Or news link.

B Gillespie · Jan 30, 2011

FroggF350 said:
If you are referring to the accident from last year that happened at GA Power, that guy was a good friend of mine and now he is dead. Nothing funny about!!!

Fence post holes: tater farmer w/ tractor, i.e. Kelly; highly unlikely to hit utilities.

Utility pole holes: digger derrick or pressure digger boring a 12-24" hole in a crowded utility easement; can be mucho dangerous.

Untrained utility co. equip. operators and lazy, backward engineers abound. I know nothing about the event you speak of, but we have had several close calls in the past from aforementioned deficiencies. Equip. operator can be completely blameless, but one unmarked line and you level a city block.

blacksheep10 · Jan 30, 2011

FroggF350 said:
If you are referring to the accident from last year that happened at GA Power, that guy was a good friend of mine and now he is dead. Nothing funny about!!!

I was referring to the last time I saw that exact same picture in an email the mail said "farmer with posthole digger". I had seen that exact same pic not 5 months earlier and the guy that worked the blowout saying that it was faulty pipe, not a puncture
Sorry you lost your buddy, I wasn't driving at that at all

blacksheep10 · Jan 30, 2011

B Gillespie said:
Fence post holes: tater farmer w/ tractor, i.e. Kelly; highly unlikely to hit utilities.

Utility pole holes: digger derrick or pressure digger boring a 12-24" hole in a crowded utility easement; can be mucho dangerous.

Untrained utility co. equip. operators and lazy, backward engineers abound. I know nothing about the event you speak of, but we have had several close calls in the past from aforementioned deficiencies. Equip. operator can be completely blameless, but one unmarked line and you level a city block.

Yeah bryan, the email I was referencing said that it was a farmer with a little post hole digger on a 3 point. You're pushing the limits at 3' on those, and there isn't a positive down pressure.
A forced digger for utility poles are WAY different.

Juan_Hong_Loe · Jan 30, 2011

Just remembered that my dad was grading a county road somewhere towards moundville al and hit an old gasoline line that was 6" underneath the road. It had water in it since it was no longer in use. Had all the permits etc. Wasnt supposed to be that close to the surface. He said when he hit it the water sprayed about 50' in the air and smelled like gasoline! Scared the **** out of him.

FroggF350 · Jan 31, 2011

I thought about it after I posted that, and figured u meant fence post holes. A crew i used to work on was replacing a pole in Alpharetta Ga. They had locates indate, but the gas line wasn't marked. They were boring out the same whole from the old pole and the gas line was right next to the old pole. The line truck digger derrick cut the gas main and sprayed gas up above the bucket in the air. He was holding the wire up while the crew replaced the pole. He moved the bucket to get out of the gas stream and when he did the wire sparked and ignited the gas. He was in the middle of a 30 foot flame thrower for about 20-30 seconds. It was so hot the bucket immediately melted off from the boom and he was hanging by his harness in the flame until his lanyard burned off and when he hit the ground both femer bones went through his lungs. He lived for a few weeks, but the infection finally got the best of him.

Elliott · Jan 31, 2011

I lived right beside the two 36" pipes that blowed up in white bluff tn. back in 92, when I say right beside I mean 150 yards from the burn line.Let me tell you it will scare the **** out of you, as high up and as far out as you could see was fire.