The pipe did not leak. The repair did.
What happened
On 18 September 2026 a member of the public reported crude oil seeping from the ground into a storm drain at a commercial intersection in Sterling Heights, Michigan. Excavation showed the release came from a Type B steel encirclement repair sleeve on the Marysville-Toledo Crude Pipeline, operated by Energy Transfer. The sleeve had been welded on in 2010. The oil was leaking through two holes in the sleeve's longitudinal weld. At least 15 barrels were recovered.
The US Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) issued a Corrective Action Order on 21 September 2026.
What the order records
The carrier pipe is 16-inch, 0.281-inch wall, X52, coal tar coated, made in 1967 with low-frequency electric resistance welded (LF-ERW) seams, a vintage PHMSA describes as susceptible to known integrity risks.
The operator could not verify the integrity of eleven other sleeves on the same line, and PHMSA records that installation records are missing for hundreds of sleeves on other systems. The order links the failure to a January 2025 release on the operator's Twin Oaks line in Pennsylvania, which also originated at a failed repair sleeve, and states that failures under at least two sleeves, each with indications of improper installation, point to a likelihood of future failures.
PHMSA also notes that steel sleeves can interfere with in-line inspection and may trap water, shielding the pipe from cathodic protection.
What PHMSA requires
The cause is not yet known. The order requires independent mechanical and metallurgical testing within 45 days and a root cause failure analysis within 90 days. It also requires an inventory of every steel encirclement repair sleeve on the affected pipelines within 90 days, a plan within 120 days to evaluate the integrity of each one, and removal of any sleeve whose integrity cannot be reasonably assured. Pressure on the affected line was cut by 20%.
What it means for asset owners
A repair sleeve is a pressure-containing component in its own right, with its own welds, its own failure modes and its own inspection needs. It is installed once, often in a hurry, and then forgotten. If the record of how it was fitted is lost, so is most of the evidence that it was done right.
What an engineer should check
- Is there a register of every sleeve, clamp and composite repair on your lines, with location, type and date?
- For each one, can you produce the welding procedure, welder qualification and inspection record?
- Does your in-line inspection plan account for what a sleeve hides?
Source. PHMSA Corrective Action Order CPF No. 4-2026-025-CAO, Energy Transfer, LP, Marysville-Toledo Crude Pipeline, 21 September 2026. Read the order.pdf). This article summarises the source in our own words; see the original for full details. It is general technical information, not advice on a specific asset.
Related reading
- Weld failure investigation
- What a failure investigation report should include
- Corrosion's growing share of US pipeline incidents
- MTIS corrosion and integrity services
- Follow MTIS on LinkedIn for new failure reviews and industry briefings.
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