Pollution
Humain
Environnement
Economique

At around 3:30 p.m., a motorcyclist speeding at more than 160 kph struck the door of a building housing a natural-gas distribution station near a gas pipeline (pressure: 37 bar, DN 80). The force of the impact blew the door inward and the motorcyclist was flung across the station. The resulting damage (tap connections and basin) created a burning gas leak, with the flames shooting up over 10 m high. The heat had an effect on the pressure-reducing station and the immediate vicinity (melted plastic traffic markers, burnt tree, melted asphalt, damaged bus shelter).

The gas pipeline’s monitoring and response plan was implemented. The firefighters set up a 100 m safety cordon, halted traffic, and evacuated the local residents. The gas utility cut off the gas supply to 4000 homes in seven localities. The gas mains in the area was not connected to the rest of the network. A non-burning flare stack was set up. The fire was brought under control at around 6:00 p.m. (it had lasted for 2.5 hours). The gas supply was restored to 3400 homes the same evening and to 600 other homes within the following 36 hours.

The building housing the station was made of a cinderblock wall and it was located in a tight curve of the D354 highway, and was not protected by crash barriers. The station had been built in 1966. The intersection and curve on the D354 had been built 15 years later, but no special roadside safety systems had been recommended. According to the press and the district attorney, the accident was a suicide.

Following the event, the administration department in charge of monitoring pipelines in the Paris area asked the gas pipeline’s operator to:

  • list the stations vulnerable to traffic hazards and propose solutions to protect them along with an implementation schedule ;
  • look into the possibility of ensuring that block valve stations can be closed in the event of a fire by checking that the positions of the block valves are compatible with the distances provided in the hazard studies ;
  • provide the best protection possible for the temporary station.