The following is a list of pipeline accidents in the United States in the 1980s. It is one of several lists of U.S. pipeline accidents. See also: list of natural gas and oil production accidents in the United States.
Incidents
This is not a complete list of all pipeline accidents. For natural gas alone, the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA), a United States Department of Transportation agency, has collected data on more than 3,200 accidents deemed serious or significant since 1987.
A "significant incident" results in any of the following consequences: Fatality or injury requiring in-patient hospitalization. $50,000 or more in total costs, measured in 1984 dollars. Liquid releases of five or more barrels (42 US gal/barrel). Releases resulting in an unintentional fire or explosion.
PHMSA and the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) post-incident data and results of investigations into accidents involving pipelines that carry a variety of products, including natural gas, oil, diesel fuel, gasoline, kerosene, jet fuel, carbon dioxide, and other substances. Occasionally pipelines are re-purposed to carry different products.Data sets of PHMSA Pipeline Safety-Flagged Incidents for 1986–2001, 2002–2009, and 2010–2017 can be downloaded from the tab by that name on the PHMSA's Pipeline Incident Flagged Files page at https://www.phmsa.dot.gov/data-and-statistics/pipeline/pipeline-incident-flagged-files, accessed 2018.01.10. PHMSA Corrective Action Orders are at . PHMSA Pipeline Failure Investigation Reports are at https://www.phmsa.dot.gov/safety-reports/pipeline-failure-investigation-reports. NTSB Pipeline Accident Reports are at https://www.ntsb.gov/investigations/AccidentReports/Pages/pipeline.aspx.
1980 January 2 – Crude oil leaked from a fractured 22-inch pipeline, at a levee crossing, in Berwick, Louisiana. At 9:54 a.m., the crude oil ignited. One person was killed, one person was injured, and six homes were either destroyed, or, damaged. The pipeline's monitoring system failed to detect a loss of over of oil. A defective sleeve weld cause the pipeline to fail. January 30 – An 8-inch refined petroleum products pipeline, owned by The Pipelines of Puerto Rico, Inc., was struck and ruptured by a bulldozer, during maintenance work on a nearby waterline, in the Sector Cana of Bayamon, Puerto Rico, about southwest of San Juan. Gasoline from the rupture sprayed downhill, and ran off into a small creek. About hours later, the gasoline vapors were ignited by an undetermined source and exploded; the subsequent fire killed one person and extensively damaged 25 houses and other property. February 21 – An explosion and fire destroyed four stores in a shopping complex and severely damaged an adjoining restaurant in Cordele, Georgia. Of the eight persons who were injured, three died later as a result of their injuries. Property damage was extensive. The NTSB investigation of the accident has revealed that natural gas leaked from a 1-inch steel service line, which had been pulled from a 1-inch compression coupling from a backhoe working in the area, and migrated under a concrete slab floor and into a jewelry store where it was ignited by an unknown source. March 6 – A Colonial Pipeline Dispatcher ignored established procedures for dealing with a pressure surge, causing a double rupture of a 32-inch steel petroleum products pipeline. One break, where the pipe had been thinned by corrosion in a casing under a road, caused the release of of aviation-grade kerosene adjacent to route 234 near Manassas, Virginia. Before being fully contained, the kerosene had flowed into Bull Run River, and had entered the Occoquan Reservoir, a source of drinking water for several northern Virginia communities. The other break, where a crack in the pipe wall initiated during rail shipment of the pipe from the steel mill finally propagated to failure, caused the release of of No. 2 fuel oil near Locust Grove, a rural area in Orange County, near Fredericksburg, Virginia. Before being fully contained, the fuel oil had flowed into the Rapidan River and then into the Rappahannock River, a source of drinking water for the City of Fredericksburg. March 7 – Sabotage during a labor strike was suspected in a gasoline pipeline explosion in Marcus Hook, Pennsylvania. The following fire burned for about 17 hours. April 16 – Gasoline at a Williams Companies pipeline terminal in Roseville, Minnesota, sprayed from the fractured cast-iron base of a station booster pump at 72 psig pressure, vaporized, and exploded after it was ignited by the spark of an electric switch in the mainline pump control room downwind of the booster pump. One man was killed, 3 others injured, and extensive damage was done to the terminal. About of petroleum products burned and property damage was estimated at $3 million. May 27 – Near Cartwright, Louisiana, an anhydrous ammonia pipeline was struck by a bulldozer, which was being used to prepare a well site, and the pipeline ruptured. Over 100 people were evacuated from the area. July 23 – A Tennessee Gas Pipeline 30 inch line burst in Clay City, Kentucky, spraying dirt and rocks in the area, damaging 2 homes. There was no fire. August 11 – A road grader ruptured an NGL pipeline in Aurora, Colorado. Firefighters had barely evacuated residents in the area when the vapors exploded, burning one firefighter. September 3 – A Mid-Valley Pipeline Co. line was ruptured by pipeline work, in Cygnet, Ohio. Efforts to contain the crude were unable to prevent some of it from entering the Portage River. September 12 – An oil pipeline ruptured and burned while it was being repaired at an oil storage Terminal in Piney Point, Maryland. One worker was killed, and 5 others injured in the fire. October 9 – A 2-inch compression coupling located on the upstream side of a gas meter set assembly in the boiler room of the Simon Kenton High School in Independence, Kentucky, pulled out of its connection with a 2-inch gas service line. Natural gas at 165-psig pressure escaped through the 2-inch opening and, seconds later, exploded and burned. A basement wall was blown down, an adjacent classroom was damaged, and one student was killed. About 30 minutes later, a second explosion occurred, which injured 37 persons and extensively damaged the school. The gas main was being uprated at the time. October 20 - A gas transmission pipeline ruptured and burned, near Canadian, Texas, causing a fire that could be seen in 4 states. October 22 – A bulldozer digging a ditch for a new pipeline hit a 16-inch crude oil pipeline near San Ysidro, New Mexico. The operator was fatally burned. November 17 – a one-inch connector on a sour gas gathering pipeline broke near Malakoff, Texas. 12 families were evacuated for a time. December 1 – A pipeline carrying naphtha ruptured under a street in Long Beach, California, causing a fire that destroyed one home and damaged several others. Two people were injured. Lack of communication of pipeline valve setups, and pressure relief valves set to open at too high a pressure were identified by the NTSB as causes of the accident. December 4 – Installation of a new pipeline affected a propane pipeline, that then burst & ignited, near Spivey, Kansas. 4 workers had minor injuries. December 10 – A dirt pan machine being used for road construction hit a propane pipeline in Sumner, Georgia, causing slight injuries to the dirt pan operator. US Highway 82 and a rail line were closed, and several families evacuated until the vapors dispersed. There was no fire. December 22 – A pipeline carrying jet fuel ruptured in Las Vegas, Nevada, spilling fuel for 2 hours. Later, the fuel ignited, forcing road closures. One firefighter was overcome by fumes. Between 50,000 and of jet fuel were spilled. Prior construction in the area was suspected of damaging the pipeline. December 23 – A Southern California Edison pipeline ruptured in Carson, California on December 23, spilling about 105,000 gallons of crude oil, with some of it reaching the Dominguez Channel. December 28 – A natural gas pipeline exploded and burned at a gas plant in Ulysses, Kansas on December 28. There were no injuries
1981 January 1 – A valve on the Trans-Alaska Pipeline System broke, releasing 42,000 gallons of crude oil 115 miles south of Prudhoe Bay, Alaska. January 5 – A gas transmission pipeline exploded and burned in Laingsburg, Michigan, causing a large fire. About a dozen homes nearby were evacuated. There were no injuries. February 13 – Construction workers severed an ethylene pipeline near Beaumont, Texas, which then exploded and burned. Three people were injured. April 7 – A 6-inch natural gas pipeline exploded, near Columbus City, Iowa. That failure caused a nearby 16 inch gas pipeline to explode and burn about 20 minutes later. The resulting fire could be seen for 35 miles. There was no injuries. April 16 – An explosion & fire in a gas feeder line to an underground gas storage facility in Columbus Junction, Iowa burned down a barn, and damaged other buildings. This was the second explosion at the facility in just over a week, and, the fifth explosion there in 6 years. July 11 – A pipeline carrying gasoline leaked in Maplewood, Minnesota. About 100,000 gallons of gasoline leaked. July 31 – An ammonia pipeline leaked near Hutchinson, Kansas, injuring 5 people, including 3 children at a Bible Camp. A radius from the leak was evacuated, including 90 from the Bible Camp. August 25 – In downtown San Francisco, California, a 16-inch natural gas main was punctured by a drill that an excavation contractor was using. Escaping natural gas blew upward and carried into the Embarcadero Complex and other nearby buildings. There was no ignition; however, the gas stream entrained an oil containing polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB). Fall-out affected an eight-square-block area of the city's financial district covering buildings, cars, trees, pedestrians, police, and firemen. Approximately 30,000 persons were safely evacuated from the area in 45 minutes. No one was killed or seriously injured, although many persons were sprayed with the PCB oil mist. There were delays in shutting down the gas, due to inaccurate diagrams. September 4 – A drilling rig, operated by a crew core-drilling for coal, near Belle, West Virginia, punctured a 12-inch gas transmission line. The pipeline was operating at a pressure of 600 psig. The rig operator was injured, the rig and a truck were destroyed, and an estimated volume of 3,433,000 cubic feet of gas was lost. September 15 – During routine maintenance, a pipeline exploded and burned between a gas plant and a petroleum plant in Goldsmith, Texas. While workers were fighting the fire, another part of the pipeline burst and burned. 6 workers were burned, and another had other injuries. There were a total of 7 fires from 7 pipeline ruptures. September 27 – A 12-inch diameter pipeline, near Ackerly, Texas, was hit by a rathole drill on September 27, releasing an ethane-propane mix. There was then an explosion & fire that killed 4 people. November 30 – At Flatwoods, West Virginia, gas leaking into a test section of a 26-inch gas transmission pipeline, ignited while a welder engaged in installing an end cap on the east end of a -long section of pipe. The resultant explosion blew off-the end cap, which struck and killed the welder's helper. December 5 – Hunters near Yutan, Nebraska tried out a new high power rifle by shooting what they thought was a log in a creek bed. The log was actually an LPG pipeline, and 12 to 16 families needed to be evacuated for their safety from the resulting vapor cloud. There was no fire. December 9 – A pipeline carrying gasoline ruptured near Joliet, Illinois, spilling of gasoline into the Des Plaines River.