Texas Worker Files $1M+ Suit Against Delfin LNG For Pipeline Blast Injuries
Petition cites failures in hazard control and safety procedures
The charred vehicle of injured Texas-based worker Laman Gutierrez remains at the site of a Feb. 3 pipeline explosion related to the Delfin LNG project in Cameron Parish, La. In a lawsuit, he seeks more than $1 million in damages from Delfin LNG, its affiliates, and other companies, alleging negligence in line pigging operations.
A Texas-based employee of a contractor working on a gas pipeline supporting the Delfin floating LNG export terminal project underway in southwest Louisiana has filed suit in Harris County District Court in Houston against the project owner and affiliated companies, alleging that unsafe conditions led to a Feb. 3 line explosion that left him with “catastrophic personal injuries.”
The Feb. 10 lawsuit seeks more than $1 million in damages for medical care, pain and suffering, physical impairment, disfigurement and lost earnings, along with exemplary damages for alleged conscious indifference to worker safety on owner Delfin Midstream's planned project, estimated to cost $4.3 billion in its first phase. The lawsuit asks that the case be heard by a jury.
Project map shows the proposed offshore floating LNG vessel location and UTOS pipeline route linking Port Delfin in the Gulf of Mexico to onshore compressor facilities in Cameron Parish, La., near where a worker alleges he was injured in a pipeline blast, according to a $1-million lawsuit filed in Texas.
Map courtesy of Delfin LNG LLC
According to the filing, plaintiff Laman Gutierrez was working for EnerMech, an engineering and technical services firm, at the legacy 28-mile pipeline in Cameron Parish, La. The line was being cleaned and inspected with a pig launcher in preparation for future service on the Delfin LNG project. Gutierrez was seated in his vehicle monitoring gauges when the pipeline ruptured “suddenly, and without warning,” triggering at least two explosions that engulfed the truck in flames and caused “catastrophic personal injuries.”
The 16‑page filing states that “defendants failed to ensure that the pipeline was free of flammable vapors and materials and was otherwise safe for [Gutierrez] to conduct his work.”
The lawsuit names multiple companies affiliated with Delfin Midstream and pipeline developer Genesis Energy as defendants. Gutierrez alleges the companies owned, operated or controlled the pipeline and failed to ensure it was free of flammable vapors or other hazards—citing failures in hazard recognition, equipment maintenance, training, supervision and enforcement of safety procedures.
ENR has contacted Delfin for comment and has not received a response.
Additional details from E&E News show that a corrective action order issued last week by the U.S. Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, part of the U.S. Transportation Dept., said the line failure "appears to be the cleaning pig impacting a closed valve.”
The rupture released an estimated 56 million cu ft of natural gas, which ignited and burned for several hours, ejecting 4 to 5 feet of pipe and producing a fire 50 to 80 feet wide, according to the order. PHMSA has required Delfin to submit a plan and inspection schedule to determine the full extent of the damage. The agency’s investigation remains ongoing, a spokesperson told the online publication.
Environmental groups have also cited the incident as evidence of risks posed by aging fossil-fuel infrastructure, according to comments reported by E&E News.
The project was set to be able to produce up to 13.2-million tons of LNG annuallly when fully completed, Delfin said previously, also noting an intent to complete a final investment decision in coming months.
