Contractor Punctures Airport Fuel Pipeline

Photo by Patricia DorfmanA private contractor drilling on a site at 37th Street and Skillman Avenue on Tuesday morning November 17 punched a hole in the Buckeye Pipeline, a main artery feeding jet fuel to LaGuardia and Kennedy Airports.

The break spilled approximately 500 gallons of jet fuel onto Skillman Avenue and adjoining streets, resulting in a traffic nightmare that sent motorists onto nearby Northern Boulevard, police officials said.

Firefighters responded to the scene at around 11:25 a.m., applied foam to the fuel and managed to shut down the feed to the pipeline in the immediate area, FDNY officials said.

Firefighters from the FDNY Haz-Mat unit were working on isolating the break to avoid further cutoff of fuel to the airports.
Representatives from the city Office of Emergency Management remained at the scene to monitor the situation and determine what further steps needed to be taken to repair and restore the system.

Police officials would not say what action, if any, would be taken against the contractor.