Update Minutes Ago: Oil Pipeline Ruptures, Los Angeles Streets Over Flowing With Oil Clean Up Begins (Video)

By Josey Wales 

Southern Californians are having a tough week. On Thursday emergency response were busy battling 9,000 acres of wildfires in the southern part of the state while overnight a broken oil pipeline spewed about 50,000 gallons of crude oil in the streets of Los Angeles

Another man made disaster. L.A. has a major oil pipe line rupture. 

The LAFD originally estimated that 1,000,000 gallons had spilled, but later revised this to 50,000 gallons.

The incident was reported by the LAFD at 00:16 local time (07:16GMT). A LAFD tractor company and hazardous materials team were at the scene, officials said.

Updates to follow:

Residents in Atwater Village in northeast Los Angeles woke up Thursday morning to find crude oil flowing down their streets. A 20 inch wide, above-ground oil line ruptured around 1 a.m., sending a geyser of oil 30 feet into the air according to local reports. The oil has coated a half-square-mile area of the mostly industrial neighborhood.

Oil in some areas is reported to be knee-high. According to current estimates, 10,000 gallonsof crude oil poured onto the streets before the line could be remotely turned off. No injuries have been reported so far and the Fire Department and a hazardous materials team remain on the scene. Several businesses — including a nearby nightclub, which was evacuated during the spill — have reported damages. Cars parked near the site of the spill, 5175 W. San Fernando Rd. have also been affected.

Fire Department reported.
The spill affected some five businesses, and the oil was “knee high” in some places, said fire department spokesman Erik Scott. Nonetheless, there was “no visible evidence” that the oil had entered storm drains, which empty into the nearby Los Angeles River, but it may have seeped under manhole covers, he said.

The leak from a 20-inch pip was reported around 12:15 a.m. and promptednotifications to two state agencies — the Governor’s office of Emergency Services and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, which includes an Office of Spill Prevention and Response, said Los Angeles Fire Department Capt. Roger Fowble.

The above-ground pipe is located in an industrial area next to a strip club in the 5100 block of West San Fernando Road called The Gentleman’s Club, where around 10 patrons and some staff members were evacuated as a result of the spill, a news videographer reported from the scene.

The patrons’ cars were “impacted” by the spill, Fowble said, and
service on a nearby Metro train line was halted for about 30 minutes, according to Scott.

Two people were transported from the scene to a hospital after
complaining of nausea and respiratory problems, ABC7 reported.

San Fernando Road was closed in both directions from Chevy Chase Drive to Electronics Place, the Los Angeles Police Department said.

Los Angeles Fire Department Battalion Chief David Spence told NBC4 the rupture turned the pipe into a geyser, with the crude hurled 15-20 feet into the air. Some of the oil landed on the roof of the strip club, prompting the evacuation.

Some 45 firefighters were sent to the scene and worked to contain the spill, fire officials said, adding that a fire department tractor company and a HazMat unit were also dispatched.

The flow in the damaged pipeline was shut down remotely, Fowble said. That happened around 1:20 a.m., according to the videographer.

Afternoon Update:   The AP reported that Fire Department spokesman Erik Scott says there is no “visible evidence” that the oil has made its way down storm drains, but that it was possible that oil had gotten under manhole covers. If oil does end up in the storm water system, the oil will soon appear in the Los Angeles River, and soon after that in the Pacific Ocean. According to the L.A. Times, emergency teams are using sand to try and keep the oil from spreading.

The break in the pipeline was at a pumping station in an industrial area near San Fernando Road in Atwater Village, the fire department said.

Video footage from the NBC affiliate showed oil spraying about 20 feet in the air from the leak, which happened at an oil-gathering station situated next to a strip club, The Gentlemen’s Club, which was evacuated, according to media reports.

The Plains West Coast pipeline is run by Plains Pipeline L.P., a unit of Plains All American.

L.A. Battalion Chief David Spence  told local television that the line ran from California’s main oil-producing region near Bakersfield to a storage facility in Long Beach, near a cluster of refineries including those run by Phillips 66, Valero and Tesoro. It was unclear which, if any, of the plants would be affected by the disruption.

A 20-inch oil pipeline is medium-sized by industry standards and would generally transport about 200,000 barrels per day based on average rates. There was no immediate information about the specific capacity or throughput of the line.

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