four wheeling over a gas line

[snowplow]

On October 27, 2006 a young man in Coquitlam thought it would be fun to drive his vehicle along the hydro and gas right of way. He ended up getting his dakota stuck in mud approximately ten feet from where the gas line was located. Fire inspectors found that the vehicle was not in danger however a few more feet could have potentialy caused damage to the line and explosions. When questioned the young man said that there were no signs saying he couldn't be there even though he had to drive over curbs to get to this location. Having to dig his truck out was a good enough punishment this time.

If you know who this person was please explain the danger of what he did.

For all of the new drivers, wheeling is fun, but some areas are off limits for a good reason.

[EXCLUSIVE 4X4]

Since you brought the topic up maybe you should explain the hazards?
We use Hydro and Gasline right aways all the time around here.
Sometimes thats the only way to get where you are going.

[Lone Ranger]

I beg to differ. Albeit he shouldn't have been there those pipe lines are usually buried to a depth of 6 to 9 feet at least. Talking to a fellow from work, Brian owns 40 acres of land in Hixon, BC and a good chunk of the hay fields are ON Teresen pipeline right of way and their response to him was that at least he was keeping the land clear for them. Keep in mind he plows these fields every year and harvests the hay for sale with a full size tractor. Plus, they do mow the grass on them as well remember.

It is private property, though, and that should be kept in mind that the right of way (both Teresen and BC Hydro) is private property and would be the same as being caught on someone's private property. Brian has permission to be on it as it works to their to their advantage too as he keeps the land clear. I wouldn't travel along one but I imagine if you cross one on trail they shouldn't say much. For buddy to hop a curb and play in the mud within city limits on a pipeline he's really pushing his luck (or an idiot). I imagine they mostly said that to scare him.. Pipelines are usually pretty safe though, when they usually run into trouble is during heavy rains and the ground becomes completely saturated and the terrain shifts...

[kore]

i wonder if he was up eagle ridge, the bypass trail is a pipeline

[Buster Cherry]

I've worked on pieplines, and lemme tell ya..... 1M down is about all you should expect from a gas line at time of burial. I drove heavy equipment near them for years oblivious to what they really were. Then I worked the pipelines and almost crapped myself. They have expansion curves built into them so that when the pipes get warm and cold, they can freely expand and shrink without binding or popping out of the ground. What this means is that they move. Don't expect that pipe to stay put exactly where it was placed. Curves at bottoms of hills can often result in a pipe that isn't quite deep enough, or a pipe that can walk closer to the surface. So, now that 3 feet down or so pipe sitting under your 44" tire buried to the hubs should actually be about another foot below it. Figure in a couple of deep ruts, and a little erosion, and you're driving on it. I have heard of older lines through fields that were put in 2 feet down... just enough to stay under the farmers plows. Not all companies are reputable, and many have shortcutted to get a job done on schedule.

[Mertin]

i dont know if i can belive this .. 2 feet down? im no ditch digger but i cant imagine any pipeline being burried less then 4 feet below the surface anything less then that just seems too unsafe

if it was at ER im sure that pipe is down deep enough that "normal" crossing wouldnt be in danger or dammaging the pipe.. hell they were driving the dam excavator over and along it clearing the area... im sure your truck isnt worse then that

[Lone Ranger]

I wouldn't be surprised. I usually hear around 6' but the post by buster cherry got me thinking a bit.. If you ever drive over the Coq in the winter time just take a look along the pipelines between the tool booth and Larson hill, the ground around them will by snow covered and there will be two lines of melted area where the pipelines are buried.

An excavator doesn't do much damage as they "float" by nature due to their tracks, but I would be SERIOUSLY surprised if a truck ever uncovered or hit a pipe. Standards are usually a minimum of 3' for a pipe and I imagine it would be stricter for a crude line, but he is correct about the expansion curves and the way most construction's being done these days schedule's are getting so rediculous that crews are forced to cut corners, but pipeline crews do tend to be some of the best around and usually do everything by the book. But still, a stock Dodge 4x4 isn't going to unearth a pipeline as there isn't much expansion/contraction in the Fraser Valley; they just made an example of him, plus it is private property. Just my .02 LR

[Buster Cherry]

I agree that 2 feet under would be rare, but you have to remember that people are only human, and if you are getting paid for a job by a bid...(you get X amount of $$$ to get it done)... then I hope you can see that corners could be cut by some people. Why spend the extra time and fuel etc to dig the whole metre down when you can say.... dig 6" less for a while, and get that much ahead. I don't think it happens that much anymore, because screwing up big now would pretty much bury a company. (They could always just change their name and restart.... it happens... a lot). And if someone was travelling a Hoe across a gasline without building a berm overtop, they should have had special permission to do so, or weren't doing it right. When I was running heavy equipment, we couldn't get near the line until we had bermed at least a metre above ground, sometimes we had to go like 2 metres because the ground was soft. Something else to remember is that when the pipe is buried, it is buried using the existing ground as a marker. If a bank slides, or a soft spot is there, where the pipe is in relation to where the ground is changes. How many mud holes that you know of DON'T get 3 feet deep? I'm not saying that everyone has hit a line, but after the stories I have heard, and what I have seen, I'm a little leery about them now. The odds are probably in your favor though. The expansion isn't for outside temperature... they usually get buried below the frost line, and temp shouldn't change that much where they are. What happens is the friction of the product moving through the lines creates heat... more product, more heat.

Anyone know if he was near a steel line or plastic one?

[Mad fab]

min cover for pipes is 0.9m to invert (top of pipe) in rights of way or non traveled areas and 1.2m in traveled areas or under road ways this is the minimum requiermen unless concrete encasment or other means of protection is used

[4Lo]

min cover for pipes is 0.9m to invert (top of pipe) in rights of way or non traveled areas and 1.2m in traveled areas or under road ways this is the minimum requiermen unless concrete encasment or other means of protection is used


Just too correct you my friend the invert is the inside bottom of a pipe. The obvert is the top inside of the pipe. You meant to say obvert I am sure. But you #'s are correct for the gvrd. And the minimum distance between two pipes should be no less that 1m.:soso

[belmont mild]

What is so hard to believe here?
People cut corners in everyday life so why not with a gas line when subbed out to another company of another company?

[Mad fab]

roger that obvert just a typo

and the cutting corners thing
itst not like when work gets subed out its a free for all ther are stlll inspectors and people other than wich work for the company that have to sign off on the work

[ANGER ranger w\ attitude]

roger that, sign off on the work
forty pounder took care of that...:soso

[frank]

I've never worked pipelines, but most jobs I have worked (commercial building construction mostly) you have a pretty good idea when to expect inspectors, and you make sure that the stuff you don't want seen is covered up beforehand. It usually works, but occasionally inspectors catch on.

[4x4 weeny]

haha, now my job actually becomes usefull!

Terasen Contractor...

Within property, as in a service going to a house, the minimum depth is 18in for a plastic line, and only 12 for a steel one. A plastic line can be as small as your index finger and pretty easy to break.

Outside of property the minimum cover for most mains is 24in. A transmission line such as the one up eagle should be plenty deep, but with the ground being torn up every day, it could be 10in deep now for all we know.

Your probably not going to hurt anything steel bigger than 1 1/4 with your truck, the most your would do is maybe tear off the wrapping.

However, i've seen a lot of careless guys lay mains 10in deep, i've seen some sites that have changed the grade and now the line is right at the surface. I could go on for a few hours, so i'll just shut up now.