Document YDGzBMG6n4D8pn1224NyzRXvD

/ C n Buffalo, 'it March 9, I9l& tr. 'Oita hear hoy i late Sunday afternoon, '"arch lot, I received at ny boa a telegram from Mr, K, Tight, resident Cheviot, McColl fronter&c Oil Co. htd., Montreal Hast, C.ne, stating that a pipeline had broken near an aviation blending tank while micing a mix and that J or 4 small drums of fluid had probably been pumped out onto the ground. Hie wire naked v/hat they should do, As yon know I called you on the phone and after a brief discussion I caught the night train to Montreal, advising hr, -i1i r-h by telegram that I would be there Monday morning to suggest proper precautions to take in cleaning up the mesa. There are six aviation, kerosene and base stock upright tanks enclosed in one dike. The area is about oO'xlCO1. Almost one half of thin area was, covered with a very dark blue gasoline and fluid mixture and on the windward side a strong lead smell could e detected , 5 *to some distance aw&v. 'he nasaline nunned out onto the ground throuth th.c .hroa?* had a lead concentration of probably -200 cca per gallon. They used five small drums of fluid and wore punping gasoline through the eductor for 35 nfcnutos before the break was discovered and the pump chut down. Each drum took five minutes to empty and assuming about 20 gal. per minute of gasoline through the eductor a concentration of the above figure wpdtld result. While the drum was being unshed this concentration, would of course be reduced but at tines there would probably be that higher concentration gasoline passing through the pipe line and through the break onto the ground. Shortly after the break was discovered a pumper nedo a miatake and pumped about 100 k&fcs bblo. of kerosene through an open valve onto the ground covered with the highly concentrated gasoline fluid mix. There is a sewer drain inside the dike wall leading to the refinery separator tanks. Investigation showed these tanks to bo almost full of slop oil and gasoline, probably 3PO bblo. The only way to get rid of this gasoline fluid mixture on the ground was to flush it down this drain. A fire hose '.fas used and the entire area flushed all day Monday. The ground was frozen hard and there wan a layer of ice over the entire area, as roll aa covered with snow. The icc layer was solid and the gasoline had not gone through it at any place no the surfh.ee was rather easily cleaned up. All snow showing any blue 3tain '.fas flushed down the newer. All of this work was done from the up-wind side and the use of ranks was not necessary, 2! K E 0022698 rape -2- kcColl Fire--lire Freak. Font real. A* J. F. KET The break ms discovered by the pumper when he came out of the aviation pump house and thought he could detect an unusual odor, lie went over to the aviation mixing tank and saw the gasoline coning up around the line to the tank, before he could signal the kthyl mixer the entire five drums had been emptied, A pipe fitter was called and Amend beduc, an examined ran, was sent to the hob. He started to dip around the pipe but the odor was so tbrong that he know it was danporeus 30 he stopped and reported to the office the condition and they in turn notified us. Amond said he did not dig more than das. two or three minutes and did not think ho via a around the tank more than five minutes altogether* Tuesday vie equipped two men with rubber boots, rubber gloves and clothing and canister gas masks and started them digging up the pipe. The ground was frosen so hard tint air hammers lad to be used. The dirt dug up from around the pib was completely saturated with the lead-mi soline mixture and we had put in old sacks and later burned under a still. It took all day Tuesday to dig up about 101 338S& of pipe and locate the break at a coupling. Wednesday the entire pipe was uncovered to the tank and the coupling removed (it had to be cut away with chipping hammer) and the short length of pipe taken out. It was then discovered that the break was in the threads of the length of pipe not yet uncovered. This whole length had to be renewed so the diggers uncovered a 20` additional length. Thursday the new pine was put in and the entire area cleaned up. The dirt was burned as mentioned above and the pipe taken out of the line wan also burned. 100 lbs. of Chlorinate of time was mixed with viator and spread liberally in the hole while being filled and on the surface of the rrouni around the area after filling was complete. The original installation was at fault causing this break. Ho provision hid been made to alow for expansion and contraction and with-the constant freezing and thawing the pipe had to buckle slightly. The breakage occurred at the weakest point, `/hen the coupling was re moved at the break it was found that only about four threads had beer, caught. I think that in our specifications or on drawing 1000-37 vie should state that adequate provision be made for expansion and con traction of all piping carrying a hjfighly concentrated mixture of Fluid in gasoline* A loop or double "!/ arrangement would probably bo sufficient to prevent another such, break an v/o had hero. HcColl has had several ouch breaks recently in other lines and are equipping vulnerable lines with none provision for expansion and contraction. Then we completed the job there w&o no odor noticeable at any point around the tanks or inside of the firewall. 0022699 Very truly yours.