[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 247 (Tuesday, December 26, 2006)]
[Notices]
[Pages 77437-77438]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E6-21994]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration

[Docket No. PHMSA-2006-26596; Notice No. 06-6]


Safety Advisory: Unauthorized Marking of Compressed Gas Cylinders

AGENCY: Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA), 
DOT.

ACTION: Safety advisory notice.

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SUMMARY: This is to notify the public that we (PHMSA) have discovered 
the unauthorized marking of high-pressure compressed gas cylinders, 
mainly cylinders containing welding gases, fire extinguishers, and 
self-contained breathing apparatus, by Consulting and Safety 
Specialists, Inc. (CSSI), located at 924 Lefort Bypass, Thibodaux, LA 
70301.
    On November 30, 2006, an inspector from PHMSA's Office of Hazardous 
Materials Enforcement (OHME) conducted a compliance inspection of CSSI. 
As a result of that inspection, PHMSA has determined that CSSI did not 
hold a valid Requalifier Identification Number issued by DOT while 
requalifying (inspecting, testing, or certifying) high-pressure 
compressed gas cylinders. In addition, CSSI marked and certified an 
undetermined number of DOT specification and/or special permit high-
pressure compressed gas cylinders as being properly tested in 
accordance with the Hazardous Materials Regulations (HMR), when it had 
not verified its equipment to be accurate as required by the HMR.
    A hydrostatic requalification and visual inspection, conducted as 
prescribed in the HMR, are used to verify the structural integrity of a 
cylinder. If the hydrostatic requalification and visual inspection are 
not performed in accordance with the HMR, a cylinder with compromised 
structural integrity may have been returned to service when it should 
have been condemned. Extensive property damage, serious personal 
injury, or death may result from rupture of a cylinder. Cylinders that 
have not been requalified in accordance with the HMR may not be charged 
or filled with compressed gas or other hazardous material and offered 
for transportation in commerce.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Billy C. Hines, Jr., Chief, Southwest 
Region, Office of Hazardous Materials Enforcement, Pipeline and 
Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, U.S. Department of 
Transportation, 8701 South Gessner Road, Suite 1110, Houston, TX 77074. 
Telephone: (713) 272-2820, Fax: (713) 272-2821.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Hazardous Materials Regulations (HMR), 
49 CFR Parts 171-180, prescribe requirements for the periodic 
requalification of cylinders used in transportation of compressed 
gases. In order to perform hydrostatic requalification of compressed 
gas cylinders, a person (including a company) must obtain an approval 
and Requalification Identification Number (RIN) from PHMSA. See 49 CFR 
107.805 and 180.205(b). PHMSA issued RIN C381 to CSSI on October 25, 
1989 to requalify high-pressure gas cylinders. CSSI's RIN expired on 
October 25, 1994 and it has not applied to renew its approval to 
requalify cylinders since that date. Therefore, CSSI is no longer 
authorized to requalify DOT specification and special permit cylinders.
    Based on our investigation, PHMSA has concluded that, over the past 
three years, CSSI marked, certified and returned to service an 
undetermined number of high-pressure gas cylinders as having been 
properly tested in accordance with the HMR when requalifying was 
performed on test equipment that was not verified to be accurate as 
required by the HMR.
    The cylinders in question are stamped with RIN C381 in the 
following pattern:

 C 3
M Y
 18

M is the month of requalification (e.g., 01, 02, etc.), and Y is the 
last two digits of the year of the requalification (e.g., 01, 02, 03).
    All high-pressure gas cylinders that have been marked and certified 
as having been hydrostatically tested by CSSI since June 2003 may pose 
a safety risk to the public and should be considered unsafe for use in 
hazardous materials service until properly requalified by a DOT-
authorized requalification facility.
    Anyone possessing a high-pressure gas cylinder, hydrostatically 
tested by CSSI between June 2003 and May 2006, and has not had the 
cylinder tested by a DOT-authorized facility since then,

[[Page 77438]]

should consider the cylinder unsafe and not fill it with a hazardous 
material unless the cylinder is first properly requalified by a DOT-
authorized requalification facility. Cylinders described in this safety 
advisory that are filled with an atmospheric gas should be vented or 
otherwise safely discharged and then taken to a DOT-authorized cylinder 
requalification facility for proper requalification to determine 
compliance with the HMR and their suitability for continuing service. 
Cylinders described in this safety advisory that are filled with a 
material other than an atmospheric gas should not be vented, but 
instead should be safely discharged, and then taken to a DOT-authorized 
cylinder requalification facility for proper test to determine 
compliance with the HMR and their suitability for continuing service. 
Mr. Billy C. Hines, Jr., Chief, Southwest Region, can provide a list of 
authorized requalification facilities in your area, or you may obtain 
the list at the following Web site: http://hazmat.dot.gov. Under no 
circumstance should a cylinder described in this safety advisory be 
filled, refilled or used for its intended purpose until it is re-
inspected and requalified by a DOT-authorized requalification facility.
    PHMSA requests that any person possessing a cylinder described in 
this safety advisory telephone or provide a facsimile to Mr. Hines with 
the following information for each cylinder: (1) The cylinder 
manufacturer's name, (2) the serial number of the cylinder, (3) the DOT 
specification or special permit information for the cylinder, and (4) 
the month and year of the last requalification date marked by CSSI.

    Issued in Washington, DC, on December 18, 2006.
Robert A. McGuire,
Associate Administrator for Hazardous Materials Safety.
 [FR Doc. E6-21994 Filed 12-22-06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-60-P