Pollution
Humain
Environnement
Economique

While conducting earthworks, a loader punctured an oil pipeline (Ø = 400 mm), buried 1.2 m deep and carrying naphtha at a pressure of 8-10 bar. Emanating from a 30 cm² opening, a jet spray 5 to 10 m high created a yellowish smelly aerosol that was spread by gravity over several hectares, encompassing an entire football field and a recreation centre.

The subsequent explosion shattered window panes and blasted tiles from roofs on nearby dwellings. The wood panelling on a building was burned. Gendarme had previously overseen the evacuation of children playing on the sports pitch, which along with several hectares of fields also burned. In all, some 100 residents had to be evacuated. The pipeline opening was clogged 2 days later. The death toll due to burns stood at 2 gendarmes and 1 civilian.

The administrative department responsible for pipeline monitoring held a number of technical meetings to analyse the consequences of this accident on the oil transport facility and laid out a pipeline repair programme. Renovation works took place from April 14th to 19th, 1989. Following a satisfactory radiographic inspection of the welds, the pipe lining was successfully repaired on August 18th and 19th.

Being updated at the time of the accident, the monitoring and intervention plan had not foreseen the scenario of a massive leak of liquid product combined with the formation of an explosive cloud and therefore did not provide a suitable intervention protocol. The administrative team responsible for monitoring undertook, in collaboration with the pipeline operator, the design of a new plan in compliance with regulatory prescriptions.

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