Williams Company, the 4th largest pipeline operator in the US, experienced 3 accidents in rapid suc-

cession between Feb-Apr 2014.

As reported by Bloomberg news Williams Reviews Safety After Fire, Explosions at Gas Plants, May
1, 2014:
Certainly, this has come as a big surprise to our organization, Chief Executive Ofcer Alan
Armstrong said on a conference call with analysts today. We are conducting very thorough
investigations into each incident to determine if theres any common or root cause.
THINK ABOUT IT.....AGAIN
Below is a partial list of the Williams Company accidents 2003-2014 taken from news articles:
2003 On May 1, a 26-inch Williams Companies natural gas transmission pipeline failed near Lake Tapps,
Washington. A neighboring elementary school, a supermarket, and 30 to 40 homes in approximately a 4-mile
(6.4 km) area were evacuated. Land movement was suspected at rst, but the failure was later determined
to be from Stress corrosion cracking. There were 4 previous failures on this pipeline in the preceding 8
years
2003 Another section of the same Williams Companies gas transmission pipeline that failed on May 1, 2003,
failed in Lewis County, Washington on December 13. There was no re this time. Gas owed for 3 hours
before being shut off. Gas pressure had already been reduced 20% on this pipeline after the May 1 explosion.
External corrosion and Stress Corrosion Cracking were seen in this failed area of pipe.
2008 A 30-inch Williams Companies gas pipeline ruptured and gas ignited near Appomattox, Virginia on
September 14. 2 homes were destroyed by the re. External corrosion was the cause of the failure.
2011 On December 3, a Williams Companies gas transmission pipeline exploded and burned in Marengo
County, Alabama. A 47 foot section of the pipe was hurled more than 200 feet from the failure area. The gas
burned for several hours, and a nearby pipeline was damaged. External corrosion was the cause of the
failure, due to issues with the pipeline coating, the cathodic protection level, and the local soil corrosiveness.
As a result of the incident and the subsequent investigation, PHMSA noted that Williams, has not determined
whether the conditions that caused the failure exist on other portions of Transco, and determined that the
continued operation of the Transco pipeline, would result in likely serious harm to life, property, and the envi-
ronment. Moreover, the existing Corrective Action order under which Williams is currently operating is not the
companys rst; on Sept. 25, 2008, PHMSA issued a Corrective Action Order to the Williams Transcontinental
Gas Pipeline Corp. in connection with a Sept. 14, 2008, natural gas explosion near Appomattox, Virginia, that
destroyed two homes and seriously injured ve people.
2012, on March 5 Williams Partners subsidiary, the Transcontinental Gas Pipeline Co. LLC ned $50,000 by
PHMSA for failure to follow its own, internal policies related to controlling external corrosion in natural
gas pipelines running through the New York City borough of Staten Island.
2012 On March 29, an employee accidentally left a valve open during maintenance work on a Williams
Companies gas compressor station near Springville, Pennsylvania. Gas leaked through the valve, causing
alarms to evacuate workers in the compressor building. Later, the gas exploded and burned. There were no
injuries. It was also found there are no agencies enforcing rules on rural gas facilities in that state.
2012 On July 23, a compressor station operated by Williams Companies in Windsor, New York was vent-
ing gas in a routine procedureduring a lightning stormwhen the vent was ignited by lightning, causing a
reball hundreds of feet into the air
2013 On March 22 A Williams Companies 24 inch gas gathering pipeline failed in Marshall County, West
Virginia.
2013 Late night on May 14, an explosion & re hit a Williams Companies gas compressor station near
Brooklyn Township, Pennsylvania.
2013, On May 30, Branchburg, NJ, Williams compressor station explosion, thirteen workers were injured,
two seriously
2014 March, Williams Northwest Pipeline plant in Plymouth WA, an explosion in March injured ve and
prompted the evacuation of hundreds of nearby residents and workers. Shrapnel from the explosion pierced a
liqueed natural gas storage tank. A leak in the tank was eventually stanched, but neither Williams nor its fed-
eral regulator, the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Administration, has explained the cause of the explosion.
2014, February-March, Sauvie Island Portland Oregon, Three gas leak incidents at gas transfer sta-
tion, prompted at least three emergency releases of gas to relieve pressure in a pipeline, causing emergency
responders in one case to evacuate nearby residents and close a school. The company did not notify
neighbors or proactively communicate with them about the ongoing problem at the facility for two
months, despite repeated gas releases. Federal safety inspectors did not visit the facility until repeated
phone calls from The Oregonian and Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., prompted the agency to deputize state regula-
tors to inspect the facility.
2014 April, Williams gas processing facility in Opal WY, explosion and re forced the evacuation Wednes-
day of the nearby community of Opal and the closure of its gas operations.
Recently, the FracTracker Alliance updated their database. A year ago, they calculated that there was
an average of 1.6 pipeline incidents per day in the United States. That gure remains accurate,
with 2,452 recorded incidents between January 1, 2010 and March 3, 2014, a span of 1,522 days.