By OGJ editors
HOUSTON, Apr. 23 -- TransCanada PipeLines Ltd. is proceeding with repairs to a section of its mainline near Brookdale, Man., that broke and caught fire Apr. 14. Meanwhile, company representatives are working with Canadian federal authorities, including the Transportation Safety Board and the National Energy Board, to determine the cause of the incident.
About 100 residents in and near Brookdale, who were evacuated after the break and fire, were cleared to return to their homes the following day. The incident occurred in a relatively remote area, with the nearest residents about 2 km from the site. There were no reported injuries.
Although customers with "interruptible" service had transportation service reduced by about 450 MMcfd, firm transportation service was not affected.
The line's automatic shutoff valves effectively closed to isolate the damaged section of pipeline and allowed the gas fire to burn out. TransCanada implemented its emergency response plan and isolated sections of two adjacent pipelines to determine any tangential damage. After complete inspections, the lines have been returned to service.
TransCanada's mainline system typically carries 5-7 bcfd of natural gas, and the company's network of 38,000 km of pipeline transports most of western Canada's natural gas production to elsewhere in Canada and the US.