Kentucky Regulations Concerning Incident Reporting

Kentucky Regulations Concerning Incident Reporting

807 KAR 5:006. General rules.

Section 26. Reporting of Accidents, Property Damage or Loss of Service.

(1) Within two (2) hours following discovery each utility, other than a natural gas utility, shall notify the commission by telephone or electronic mail of any utility related accident which results in:

(a) Death; or shock or burn requiring medical treatment at a hospital or similar medical facility, or any accident requiring inpatient overnight hospitalization;

(b) Actual or potential property damage of $25,000 or more; or

(c) Loss of service for four (4) or more hours to ten (10) percent or 500 or more of the utility's customers, whichever is less.

(2) A summary written report shall be submitted by the utility to the commission within seven (7) calendar days of the utility related accident.

(3) Natural gas utilities shall report utility related accidents in accordance with the provisions of 807 KAR 5:027.

807 KAR 5:022. Gas safety and service.

Section 13. Operations.

(16) Continuity of service.

(a) The utility shall keep a complete record of all interruptions on its entire system or on major divisions of its system. The record shall show the cause of interruption, date, time, duration, remedy and steps taken to prevent recurrence. The commission shall be notified of major interruptions as soon as they come to the attention of the utility and a complete report made after restoration of service.

807 KAR 5:027. Gas pipeline safety; reports of leaks.

Section 1. Definitions.

(1) "Incident" means a gas leak, accident, or other event on a pipeline which requires the utility to notify United States Department of Transportation (USDOT) or the commission.

(2) "Pipeline facilities" includes, without limitation, new and existing pipe, right-of-way, and any equipment, facility, or building used in transportation of gas or treatment of gas during the course of transportation.

(3) "System" means all pipeline facilities used by a utility in transportation of gas, including but not limited to, line pipe, valves and other appurtenances connected to line pipe, compressor units, fabricated assemblies associated with compressor units, metering (including customers' meters) and delivery stations, and fabricated assemblies in metering and delivery stations.

(4) "Test failure" means a break or rupture that occurs during strength-proof testing of transmission or gathering lines that is of such magnitude as to require repair before continuation of the test.

(5) "Transportation of gas" means the gathering, transmission, or distribution of gas by pipeline, or storage of gas in or effecting interstate, intrastate or foreign commerce.

Section 2. Scope.

(1) This administrative regulation prescribes requirements for reporting gas leaks that are not intended by the utility and that require immediate or scheduled repair and of test failures as defined in Section 1(4) of this administrative regulation.

(2) This administrative regulation applies to leaks and test failures that occur in the gathering of gas located in the following areas:

(a) An area within the limits of any incorporated or unincorporated city, town, or village; or

(b) Any designated residential or commercial area such as a subdivision, business or shopping center, or community development.

(c) The right-of-way of a state highway, county road or railroad on property of a school, church, hospital, park or similar public place.

Section 3. Telephonic Notice of Certain Incidents.

(1) At the earliest practicable moment but no later than two (2) hours following discovery, each utility shall give notice to the commission in accordance with subsection (3) of this section of any incident that:

(a) Is reported to USDOT pursuant to 49 CFR Part 191, Federal Pipeline Safety Regulations.

(b) Requires taking any segment of pipeline or mains out of service.

(d) Causes estimated damage to property of the utility, or others, or both, of $25,000 or more.

(e) Results in the loss of service to forty (40) or more customers for four (4) or more hours.

(f) Causes the loss of a sizable amount of gas.

(g) Received extensive news coverage, or in the judgment of the utility is significant, even though it does not meet the criteria of paragraphs (a) through (g) of this subsection.

(2) A utility need not give notice of an incident that meets only criteria of subsections (1)(b) and (c) of this section if it occurred solely as a result of, or in connection with, planned or routine maintenance or construction.

(3) Each notice required by subsection (1) of this section shall be made by telephone to the commission's chief engineer, gas pipeline safety branch, or designated staff; and shall include the following numbers:

(a) Names of operator and person making report and their telephone numbers.

(b) Location of incident.

(d) Number of fatalities.

(e) All other significant facts known by the operator that are relevant to the cause of the incident or extent of damage.

(4) If designated staff cannot be contacted, required information shall be reported by telephone to the nearest post of Kentucky State Police, followed by confirmation via electronic mail addressed to the commission.

(5) Each notice made in accordance with this section shall be supplemented by a written report within thirty (30) days giving full details such as cause; extent of injuries or damage; and steps, if any, taken to prevent reoccurrence. If additional information is received by the utility subsequent to the initial report indicating a different cause, more serious injury, or more serious property damage than was initially reported, a supplemental telephone call shall be made to the commission's chief engineer, gas pipeline safety branch, as soon as practicable.

Section 4. Addressee for Written Report.

(1) Each written report required by this administrative regulation shall be transmitted to the Gas Pipeline Safety Branch, Public Service Commission, Post Office Box 615, Frankfort, Kentucky 40602.

(2) Each written report required by Sections 3 and 12 of this administrative regulation shall be transmitted to the Gas Pipeline Safety Branch, Public Service Commission, Post Office Box 615, Frankfort, Kentucky 40602; and one (1) copy shall be transmitted to the Resources Manager, Office of Pipeline Safety, Research and Special Programs Administration, U.S. Department of Transportation, Room 8417, 400 Seventh Street, SW, Washington, D.C. 20590.

Federal Regulations Concerning Incident Reporting

49 CFR §191.3 - Definitions.

As used in this part and the PHMSA Forms referenced in this part--

Administrator means the Administrator, Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration or his or her delegate

Gas means natural gas, flammable gas, or gas which is toxic or corrosive;

Incident means any of the following events:

(1) An event that involves a release of gas from a pipeline or ofliquefied natural gas or gas from an LNG facility and

(i) A death, or personal injury necessitating in-patient hospitalization; or

(ii) Estimated property damage, including cost of gas lost, of the operator or others, or both, of $50,000 or more.

(2) An event that results in an emergency shutdown of an LNG facility.

(3) An event that is significant, in the judgement of the operator, even though it did not meet the criteria of paragraphs (1) or (2).

LNG facility means a liquefied natural gas facility as defined in Sec. 193.2007 of part 193 of this chapter;

Master Meter System means a pipeline system for distributing gas within, but not limited to, a definable area, such as a mobile home park, housing project, or apartment complex, where the operator purchases metered gas from an outside source for resale through a gas distribution pipeline system. The gas distribution pipeline system supplies the ultimate consumer who either purchases the gas directly through a meter or by other means, such as by rents;

Municipality means a city, county, or any other political subdivision of a State;

Offshore means beyond the line of ordinary low water along that portion of the coast of the United States that is in direct contact with the open seas and beyond the line marking the seaward limit of inland waters;

Operator means a person who engages in the transportation of gas;

Outer Continental Shelf means all submerged lands lying seaward and outside the area of lands beneath navigable waters as defined in Section 2 of the Submerged Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 1301) and of which the subsoil

and seabed appertain to the United States and are subject to its jurisdiction and control.

Person means any individual, firm, joint venture, partnership, corporation, association, State, municipality, cooperative association, or joint stock association, and includes any trustee, receiver, assignee, or personal representative thereof;

Pipeline or Pipeline System means all parts of those physical facilities through which gas moves in transportation, including, but not limited to, pipe, valves, and other appurtenance attached to pipe, compressor units, metering stations, regulator stations, delivery stations, holders, and fabricated assemblies.

State includes each of the several States, the District of Columbia, and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico;

Transportation of gas means the gathering, transmission, or distribution of gas by pipeline, or the storage of gas in or affecting interstate or foreign commerce.

49 CFR §191.5 - Telephonic notice of certain incidents.

(a) At the earliest practicable moment following discovery, each operator shall give notice in accordance with paragraph (b) of this section of each incident as defined in §191.3.

(b) Each notice required by paragraph (a) of this section shall be made by telephone to 800-424-8802(in Washington, DC, 267-2675) and shall include the following information:

(1) Names of operator and person making report and their telephone numbers.

(2) The location of the incident.

(3) The time of the incident.

(4) The number of fatalities and personal injuries, if any.

(5) All other significant facts that are known by the operator that are relevant to the cause of the incident or extent of the damages.

49 CFR §191.7 - Addresseefor written reports.

Each written report required by this part must be made to the Office of Pipeline Safety, Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, U.S. Department of Transportation, the Information Resources Manager, PHP-10, 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE, Washington, DC 20590-0001. However, incident and annual reports for intrastate pipeline subject to the jurisdiction of a State agency pursuant to a certification under section 5(a) of the Natural Gas Pipeline Safety Act of 1968 may be submitted in duplicate to that State agency if the regulations of that agency require submission of these reports and provide for further transmittal of one copy within 10 days of receipt for incident reports and not later than March 15 for annual reports to the Information Resources Manager. Safety-related condition reports required by §191.23 for intrastate pipeline transportation must be submitted concurrently to that State agency, and if that agency acts as an agent of the Secretary with respect to interstate transmission facilities, safety-related condition reports for these facilities must be submitted concurrently to that agency.

49 CFR §191.9 - Distribution system: Incident report.

(a) Except as provided in paragraph (c) of this section, each operator of a distribution pipeline system shall submit Department of Transportation Form RSPA F 7100.1 as soon a practicable but not more than 30 days after detection of an incident required to be reported under §191.5.

(b) When additional relevant information is obtained after the report is submitted under paragraph (a) of this section, the operator shall make supplementary reports as deemed necessary with a clear reference by date and subject to the original report.

(c)The incident report required by this section need not be submitted with respect to master meter systems or LNG facilities.

49 CFR §191.15 - Transmission and gathering systems: Incident report.

(a) Except as provided in paragraph (c) of this section, each operator of a transmission or a gathering pipeline system shall submit Department of Transportation Form RSPA F 7100.2 as soon as practicable but not more than 30 days after detection of an incident required to be reported under §191.5.

(b) Where additional related information is obtained after a report is submitted under paragraph (a) of this section, the operator shall make a supplemental report as soon as practicable with a clear reference by date and subject to the original report.