PHMSA defines a serious pipeline incident as an event involving a fatality or injury requiring in-patient hospitalization.
The tables below show the number of Serious Incidents in a year for each type of pipeline operator. Each year and selected column totals provide links to focused reports showing the causes of the corresponding incidents.
The data source for this table is the PHMSA Filtered Incident Files.(1) (2) (3)
Where appropriate, the table columns can be sorted by clicking the corresponding column header.
There is also a designation for Significant Incidents which includes all serious incidents as well as incidents with significant consequences beyond injury and fatality. See Significant Pipeline Incidents for information on this larger set of incidents.
More Pipeline Incidents and Mileage Reports are available.
| Year | All Types | Hazardous Liquid (A) | Gas Transmission (A) | Gas Gathering (2) | Gas Distribution |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1988 | 93 | 11 | 7 | 1 | 74 |
| 1989 | 87 | 6 | 14 | 0 | 67 |
| 1990 | 54 | 3 | 12 | 0 | 39 |
| 1991 | 67 | 6 | 7 | 1 | 53 |
| 1992 | 69 | 8 | 10 | 1 | 50 |
| 1993 | 67 | 5 | 10 | 1 | 51 |
| 1994 | 76 | 6 | 10 | 0 | 60 |
| 1995 | 59 | 6 | 8 | 2 | 43 |
| 1996 | 63 | 10 | 6 | 0 | 47 |
| 1997 | 49 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 41 |
| 1998 | 70 | 5 | 11 | 0 | 54 |
| 1999 | 66 | 9 | 5 | 0 | 52 |
| 2000 | 62 | 3 | 7 | 1 | 51 |
| 2001 | 40 | 6 | 4 | 0 | 30 |
| 2002 | 36 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 30 |
| 2003 | 61 | 2 | 8 | 0 | 51 |
| 2004 | 48 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 42 |
| 2005 | 41 | 4 | 5 | 1 | 31 |
| 2006 | 35 | 1 | 7 | 1 | 26 |
| 2007 | 47 | 5 | 8 | 0 | 34 |
| 2008 YTD | 27 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 23 |
| Totals | 1,217 | 105 | 152 | 11 | 949 |
| 5 Year Average (2003-2007) | 46 | 3 | 6 | 1 | 37 |
| 10 Year Average (1998-2007) | 51 | 4 | 6 | 1 | 40 |
| 20 Year Average (1988-2007) | 60 | 5 | 7 | 1 | 46 |
Notes
- Serious Hazardous Liquid and Gas Transmission offshore incidents are combined with their onshore counterparts in this report. There have been no serious offshore Hazardous Liquid incidents reported over the displayed time period and no serious offshore Gas Transmission incidents since 1996.
Sources
- PHMSA Hazardous Liquid Filtered Incidents File - October 14, 2008
- PHMSA Gas Transmission Filtered Incidents File - October 14, 2008
- PHMSA Gas Distribution Filtered Incidents File - October 14, 2008
See Pipeline Incidents and Mileage Reports for more pipeline safety reports.