• The excavation at the site of the damaged pipe has grown substantially in the last few days in order to provide safe access for pipe removal. This image shows the space from which the damaged section has just been removed. (Bruce Reitherman / Santa Barbara County)
  • The damaged pipe section was removed from the trench and transported a short distance to a covered area where it was inspected under the continuous and watchful eye of security staff and California Department of Fish and Wildlife personnel. (Bruce Reitherman / Santa Barbara County)
  • The location of the rupture was inspected and photographed by a number of Plains and agency personnel. (Bruce Reitherman / Santa Barbara County)
  • The rupture appeared to be about eight inches long. (Bruce Reitherman / Santa Barbara County)
  • Two additional sections of pipe were subsequently cut and removed from the trench. (Bruce Reitherman / Santa Barbara County)
  • All three cut sections were moved to the area next to the first piece of damaged pipe (visible to the right in background). (Bruce Reitherman / Santa Barbara County)
  • (Bruce Reitherman / Santa Barbara County)
  • The damaged pipe section was moved to a wooden crate and secured inside a truck-trailer transport unit for delivery to a third-party PHMSA-approved analytical facility located in Ohio. CDFW staff indicated that their staff would accompany the shipment the entire journey. (Bruce Reitherman / Santa Barbara County)
  • A large quantity of contaminated material remained in the bottom of the trench. (Bruce Reitherman / Santa Barbara County)
  • Excavation of the trench continued through the rest of the day in an attempt to remove all material that could be determined to be contaminated by visual inspection. (Bruce Reitherman / Santa Barbara County)
  • Despite this effort, traces of contamination remained visible in the sidewalls of the trench. Note black stains in the area beyond the excavator bucket. Excavations completed by the end of the day had created conditions that required additional earth-moving along the tops of the trench banks to allow for step-backs necessary to protect against sidewall collapse. Such earth-moving is likely to require some hours, and activity within the trench is likely to be postponed until safe conditions can be reestablished. (Bruce Reitherman / Santa Barbara County)
  • Detail of contaminated side wall. (Bruce Reitherman / Santa Barbara County)
  • Plans at the close of work were to replace the sections of removed pipe with new pipe as soon as possible in order to allow purging of this entire leg of the pipeline and reestablish integrity to the regional pipeline system so as to allow restart of operations on peripheral legs of the pipeline system that were not effected by the rupture, but which have been shut down since the time of the release event. (Bruce Reitherman / Santa Barbara County)
  • (Bruce Reitherman) also inspected the site of Anomaly #2 (pictured) and #3, both located within 100 yards of each other in the Brinkman Ranch, about 3.6 miles east of Gaviota Pass. Pipe showed signs of corrosion sufficient to require the temporary installation of a clamp, pictured below. (Bruce Reitherman / Santa Barbara County)
  • This device will provide a temporary repair until the line can be purged and more permanent repairs can be effected. (Bruce Reitherman / Santa Barbara County)
  • On the bluff above the location where oil made its way under U.S. Highway 101 and into the sea, crews worked to remove contaminated sediment from the culvert under the Union Pacific Railroad railroad tracks. (Bruce Reitherman / Santa Barbara County)
  • Traffic controls narrowed the highway from two lanes to one. No significant slow down to traffic flow was noted. (Bruce Reitherman / Santa Barbara County)
  • An effort was made to dislodge and suck material from the culvert using hand tools and a vacuum truck. (Bruce Reitherman / Santa Barbara County)
  • Contaminated sediments proved resistant to removal, however. (Bruce Reitherman / Santa Barbara County)
  • The culvert remained clogged at the end of the day. (Bruce Reitherman / Santa Barbara County)

Noozhawk executive editor Giana Magnoli can be reached at gmagnoli@noozhawk.com.