An ExxonMobil pipeline carrying a highly flammable gas ruptured early Friday in Iberville Parish and forced shelter in place orders for Plaquemine High and a neighborhood south of the school for several hours, parish officials said.
Clint Moore, parish homeland security director, said the leak did not cause any injuries but required precautionary steps.
"Everything was done just out of an abundance of caution to make sure we cover our bases," Moore said.
ExxonMobil maintenance crews happened to be on the scene at the time of the initial leak of ethylene gas sometime before 9:30 a.m. and shut off a valve to halt the flow of additional gas into the line, parish officials said.
Crews used two flares to burn off the gas left the line, but it took hours to reduce pressures sufficiently and kept shelter orders in place at the school of nearly 1,000 students and the Pecan Meadow neighborhood.
The leak of ethylene occurred along La. 75, or Belleview Road, in Plaquemine, just south of the high school, and forced the closure of the highway just past Pecan Meadow Drive, parish officials said.
ExxonMobil officials said they worked closely with parish officials to address the leak and apologized 鈥渇or the disruption this has caused the community.鈥�
"We鈥檝e isolated the affected area on the pipeline to reduce remaining product and stop the release as quickly and safely as possible," Lauren Kight, ExxonMobil spokeswoman, said midday Friday as the gas levels were being reduced.
Plaquemine High, Iberville鈥檚 largest public high school, has about 975 students, state enrollment data show.
At normal temperatures and pressures, ethylene is a colorless gas with a faintly sweet smell but is highly flammable.
It is also heavier than air and can displace oxygen and lead to dizziness and even asphyxia in confined or low areas, according to industry data sheets.
A hydrocarbon derivative drawn from natural gas or petroleum through steam cracking, ethylene is a critical feedstock for many chemical and plastic manufacturing processes.
Because La. 75 runs so close to the leaking gas line, it remained closed late Friday afternoon as pressures were still going down and nearly at safe levels, Moore said.
Parish officials lifted the shelter order at the high school after about an hour and a half, around 11 a.m., and the one for the Pecan Meadow neighborhood around 1:45 p.m., according to officials鈥� timelines.
Iberville Parish officials lifted a shelter in place order for Plaquemine High School and the nearby Pecan Meadow neighborhood following the leak of a highly flammable gas from an ExxonMobil pipeline near them early Friday.
The leak of ethylene occurred along La. 75, or Belleview Road, in Plaquemine, just south of the high school, parish officials said.听
La. 75 past Pecan Meadow remains closed.
Clint Moore, Iberville Parish homeland security director, said the leak is about 95% contained but the highway remains closed because of its proximity to the leaking pipeline.听
ExxonMobil maintenance crews happened to be on the scene at the time of the initial leak, parish officials said, and shut off a valve to halt the flow of ethylene into the pipeline.
"We apologize for the disruption this has caused the community," said Lauren Kight, ExxonMobil spokeswoman. "We鈥檝e isolated the affected area on the pipeline to reduce remaining product and stop the release as quickly and safely as possible."
Crews have been flaring off the rest of the product, parish officials said.
At normal temperatures and pressures, ethylene is a colorless gas with a faintly sweet smell but is highly flammable.
It is also heavier than air and can displace oxygen and lead to dizziness and even asphyxia in confined or low areas, according to industry data sheets.听
A drawn from natural gas or petroleum through steam cracking, ethylene is a critical feedstock for many chemical and plastic manufacturing processes.听聽
ExxonMobil officials said they are working closely with parish officials. Moore, the parish official, said the leak led no injuries but required the precautionary shelter orders.听
"Everything was done just out of an abundance of caution to make sure we cover our bases," Moore said.
The shelter order for the high school was lifted at 11 a.m. and the one for Pecan Meadow at 1:45 p.m., parish officials said.