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Home My WebLink AboutThe Pipeline Group (2)Laurel City Council Attn: Council PO Box 10 Laurel MT 59044-0010 Dear Council: The Pipeline G_rouF' 4400 N. Big Spring Ste B-21 Midian ~,~. ex, as ~7~"-ii-~/-'~-~- (432)685-1731 F~ (432)~~ ~ U ~ L~; ~'~ ~.pipelinegroup.ca J MAY I 9 2003 May 14, 2003 ~ CITY OF LAUREL VISIT OUR WEB SITEI You may RSVP, look at our i schedule, learn more about The Pipeline Group at ~.DiDeline~roup.com ...... ~tq,s~-fim. e agaiPrfor our-Public Education - Contractor Awarenes~ProgramJn-Billings~Montana. The pipeline operators listed below cordially invite you and your euuioment ooerators to a complimentary dinner and brief safety program on damage prevention related to excavation activities. This annual informal event will begin with a free dinner at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, June 12, 2003, at the Billings Hotel and Convention Center, 1223 Mullowney Lane, in Billings, Montana. The dinner and program last about an hour and a half. The FBI has been invited to speak on how you can held prevent terrorist attacks on DiDelines and underuround utiliti,,. Each adult attending this program will be eligible for a GPS Receiver. This event is a continuing educational program to assist you in avoiding significant financial losses and injuries or loss of life as a result of damage to underground pipelines. The information provided will include: An introduction to pipelines and the pipeline industry. State and federal laws governing excavation activities. Indicators of a pipeline release. First actions to follow if involved with a pipeline failure. This invitation is being sent to all parish and city government officials and excavators in Big Horn, Carbon, Golden Valley, Musselshell, Stillwater, Treasure, Wheatland, and Yellowstone counties. If you ara truly interested in the safety of your employees and your community you will e-mail us at www.pipelinegroup.com or return the enclosed postage paid RSVP card or call The Pipeline Group at 'I-800-982-8752 by Wednesday, June 4,2003; and let us know how m~ny people from your organFzation will be attending. Representatives from the companies listed below will be there to meet you and answer any questions you have about their underground facilities. Sincerely, Cenex Pipeline Co - Conoco Pipe Line Co - ExxonMobil Pipeline Co ~ Rocky Mountain Pipeline Systems LLC - Terasen Pipelines (USA) Inc - Utilities Underground Locate Center CALL AT LEAST 2 WORKING DAYS BEFORE DIGGING Utilities Underground Locate Center 1-800-424-5555 A federal law now in effect states that any person who engages in excavation activities without first us ng an ava able one-call notification system to determine locations of underground facililJes; or without heeding location information or markings and subsequently damages a pipeline facility shall be subject to a fine, imprisonment, or both. The law also states that OSHA may be notified of any accident caused by an excavator. Please see our accident report on the back of this letter. ACCIDENTS HAPPEN! IT COULD HAVE BEEN YOU ROCKLAND CA--A backhoe being used on a construction project punctured a gas main, causing the surrounding neighborhood to be evacuated. The pipe was repaired without incident. The incident was being investigated by local officials. I/6/2003 OVERLAND PARK KS--A public uproar on the part of city and state officials resulted when the local gas company took six hours to shut off a gas main that had been damaged by construction equipment. This incident came on top of a number of instances where excavators damaged mismarked gas lines. City officials want the state regulatory commission to more closely monitor a project to map locations of all gas lines ir~ the city. The gas company said there were problems, because many of the lines had been installed by other companies, which it has purchased in recent years. The commission chairman sympathized, saying that he has little confidence in the accuracy of the records of some of those companies. A company that is installing fiber optic cables in the city also came under criticism and was urged to be more careful when working around gas lines. 9/5/2002 GALVESTON TX--Some 400 children were evacuated from an elementary school after a city worker cut a 3/4-inch steel gas line while sawing pavement. The worker went into a nearby office and asked that 911 be called. He then ran across the street to the school and told them to evacuate. The leak was fixed without incident. 1/10/2003 LAS CRUCES NM--An elementary school was evacuated after a road construction crew hit a gas main and a water line. Firefighters checked for gas concentrations in the building, and allowed school to resume. But, a short time later school officials ended classes for the day, because of the lack of water. No details were provided on how the accident happened. SLATON TX--The whole town suffered a telephone outage lasting about six hours when a fiber optic cable was cut. Both the city public works department and the state DOT had crews working in the area, but both said they were unaware of any of their workers being involved. 8/23/2002 AUSTIN TX--A crew installing a new pipeline struck an existing line, causing several homes and buildings to be evacuated for over three hours. The excavation crew said that a locate had been requested, but the line might not have been marked. The owner of the damaged line agreed that a locate request had been received, but claimed the line had been marked and that possibly the excavator was working outside the dig area indicated on the ticket. Firefighters found dangerous levels of gas in several homes and buildings, but there were no explosions. 3/13/2002 CHATTANOOGA TN--A flash fire erupted when gas escaping from a gas main ignited, and three workers were injured. The main had been damaged during excavation associated with a sewer project. One of the workers was hospitalized in stable condition and the other two were treated and released. Two of the workers were down in the hole when a backhoe operated by another crew member cut a basketball-sized hole in the gas main. The two scrambled out just before the gas ignited. They were both burned, along with the third worker who was standing nearby. Firefighters arriving on the scene evacuated a whole city block until the fire was extinguished and the leak was sealed off. 10/16/2002 GRIFFIN GA--Dozens of people and seven businesses were evacuated when a construction crew damaged a 4-inch gas main. The crew was installing a new gas line at the time of the accident. The escaping gas went into a storm drain, creating added hazard. The line was fixed after about three hours. 12/31/2003 The above accident file was taken from Underground Focus Magazine web page www.underspace.com producer of Digging Dangers films. For further information call (715) 635-7975