Sometimes, Shit Just Blows Up

IX. Rockford Eclipse Valve Replacement Program 

It is necessary for South Jersey to remove and replace defectively designed riser valves that are installed at approximately 70,000 of the Company’s customers’ residences and businesses to ensure public safety and system reliability. The valves that need to be replaced were manufactured, distributed and sold to South Jersey and other utilities by a combination of the following companies: Rockford-Eclipse, Eclipse, Inc., Mueller Company, and Mueller Group Ltd. in the 1980s and early 1990s.

The valves were also installed at customer locations during that time frame. Based upon several failures associated with these valves, including one that led to significant property damage, and subsequent testing and analysis, South Jersey has determined that these riser valves (“Rockford Eclipse valves”) were defectively designed. To ensure public safety these Rockford Eclipse valves must be replaced.

At the time of this filing, South Jersey has experienced three failures of Rockford Eclipse valves at residential locations and without the proactive measures the Company took when the design defect was discovered, it is possible that more failures could have occurred. The first incident occurred in February 2005 when a Company employee responded to a leak call at a residence in Voorhees, NJ. In response to the leak, the employee attempted to shut off the flow  of gas to the residence by operating the Rockford Eclipse valve. In doing so, the Rockford Eclipse valve’s stem blew out causing a release of gas and subsequent fire. This caused extensive damage at the property. While this failure was the first time South Jersey experienced a problem with the Rockford Eclipse valve, two subsequent failures, testing on the valves and opinions contained in expert reports produced in litigation led South Jersey to conclude that these  valves must be identified and replaced so that this type of incident would not be repeated.

The second known failure occurred in July 2005 when a homeowner operated a Rockford Eclipse valve to perform maintenance inside his Deptford, NJ home. Similar to the first failure, when the Rockford Eclipse valve was operated, the stem blew out of the valve. Fortunately though, this failure did not lead to any personal injury or damage to the homeowner’s property. In response to the failure, South Jersey shut off gas service to the home and replaced the valve.

 In March 2008, a contractor at a third residence in Berlin, NJ operated a Rockford Eclipse valve, again causing the valve stem to blow out of the valve. South Jersey responded, shut off gas service to the home and replaced the valve. Again, fortunately, there was no property damage or personal injury related to this valve failure. At this point, South Jersey still  had approximately 70,000 Rockford Eclipse valves installed in its service territory.

These three failures represented the only known problems that the Company experienced with the Rockford Eclipse valves.

As a result of the extensive damage purportedly caused by the first failure of the Rockford Eclipse valve, litigation was commenced by the property owner and others against  South Jersey and the manufacturers of the Rockford Eclipse valve in Superior Court of New Jersey – Law Division, Camden County. This matter was captioned McKee Duncan, et als. v. South Jersey Gas Company, et als. and docketed as CAM-L-686-07 (“Duncan litigation”). During the course of the Duncan litigation, specifically in 2008, South Jersey learned for the first time that the failure of the Rockford Eclipse valve was caused by a flaw in the design of the valve. To our knowledge, the valves had caused no problems during the first twenty years or so of their lives following installation. This design defect was revealed in expert reports submit in the Duncan litigation. This design defect caused the Rockford Eclipse valve to corrode internally and seize up, which prevented proper operation. In addition to the internal corrosion problem, the Rockford Eclipse valve does not have a nut opposite the valve plug which would allow a service technician to loosen the valve if it seizes.

Although the valves present no safety hazard in their current (dormant) state, they become problematic when used for their intended purpose, which is to stop the flow of gas.

Precautionary actions have been and continue to be taken by South Jersey to mitigate future damage from valves malfunctioning. We believe the problem is limited to Rockford Eclipse  valves and does not extend to valves manufactured by companies other than Rockford-Eclipse, Eclipse, Inc. Mueller Group, Ltd. and Mueller Company.

In response to this situation, South Jersey has conducted a survey to identify the location of Rockford Eclipse valves throughout its service territory. This survey identified 69,167  locations as having a Rockford Eclipse valve on the service riser. Yellow plastic safety/warning  caps stating “Warning – Tampering subject to prosecution” were then purchased and installed on each identified Rockford Eclipse valve to deter unauthorized personnel from operating the  Rockford Eclipse valve.

Once tagged, South Jersey commenced its plan to replace all of the defective valves.

Pursuant to this plan, each Rockford Eclipse valve in the South Jersey distribution system will be inspected by no later than April 30, 2011 to determine evidence of atmospheric corrosion. Valves which are graded as poor in this survey will receive the highest priority in the replacement plan. Following completion of the survey, a plan for prioritizing and replacing all Rockford Eclipse valves will be developed and provided to the Board by no later than July 31, 2011.