Accidentally contacting a power line can be dangerous and in some cases, even deadly. Your Cooperative wants to help our members stay safe around power lines.
Keep a Safe Distance
Whether you are playing outdoors with your children or working on landscaping projects, keep a safe distance from power lines and other equipment your co-op uses to get electricity to your home.
Always remember to:
- Stay away from power lines, meters, transformers, and electrical boxes.
- Don’t climb trees near power lines.
- Never fly kites, remote control airplanes, or balloons near power lines.
- If you get something stuck in a power line, call a MEC crew to get it.
- Keep a safe distance from overhead power lines when working with ladders or installing objects such as antennas.
- Never touch or go near a downed power line.
- Don’t touch anything that may be touching a downed wire, such as a car.
- Keep children and pets away.
Power Line Hazards & Cars
Accidents, severe storms, and other disasters can cause power lines to come down. With one wrong move before, during, or after a disaster, a life can be lost. Know the right steps to take to keep you and your family safe:
- If you see downed power lines or other damaged electrical equipment, notify the local electric utility as soon as possible because the lines could still be live.
- Just because power lines are damaged does not mean they are dead. Stay away, and instruct others to do the same.
- Power lines do not have to be arcing or sparking to be live and dangerous.
- Downed power lines, stray wires, and debris in contact with them all have the potential to deliver a fatal shock. Stay clear of fallen power lines and damaged areas that could hide a hazard. Be alert during clean-up efforts.
- Treat all power lines as if they are energized until there is certainty that power has been disconnected.
- If a power line has landed on the ground, there is the potential for the area nearby to be energized. Stay far away, and warn others to do the same.
- Do not attempt to drive over a downed power line.
- If you are driving and come along a downed power line, stay away and warn others to stay away. Contact emergency personnel or your utility company to address the downed power line.
- If power lines should fall on your vehicle while you are driving, do not attempt to drive away or get out. Call for help, and stay inside until utility crews say it is safe to get out. The only exception would be if fire or other danger, like the smell of gasoline, is present. In that case, the proper action is to jump—not step—with both feet hitting the ground at the same time. Jump clear. Do not allow any part of your body to touch the vehicle and ground at the same time. Hop to safety, keeping both feet together as you leave the area.
- Any power line that is dead could become energized at any moment due to power restoration or backup generators.
As in all power line-related emergencies, call for help immediately by dialing 911 and calling MEC at (800) 752-5935.
Electrical Safety Flyers
Plant the Right Tree in the Right Place
The larger the tree, the farther it should be from a power line. Avoid planting beneath power lines, near poles, or close to electrical equipment.
Remember, know what’s below by calling 811 before you dig.
Public Safety Tips
Used with care, electricity is safe and improves our quality of life. But it can cause death or injury if used improperly. Remember that electricity always seeks a path to the ground. If you become part of that path to ground, you are in danger of electrocution or serious injury. MEC offers these tips to keep you safe inside and outside your home:
Using common sense can keep you safe from accidental shock or electrocution:
- Never mix water and electricity. That means do not allow a hairdryer, radio or other electronic devices to be used around water – especially the bathtub.
- Make sure bathroom outlets have a ground fault interrupter, or GFI, device installed. The GFI will trip the electric circuit if a fault is detected.
- Replace cut, punctured, or worn electric cords. Never run a cord under a rug or through a wet area.
- Use three-pronged plugs. The third prong grounds the circuit and prevents shocks.
- Don’t mess with breaker panels or fuse boxes. If a circuit trips and you are not sure why, call a licensed electrician.
- If an appliance is sparking or buzzing, turn it off and get it fixed or replaced.
- Never overload a circuit. Big multiple-plug devices lead to overloading and the possibility of a fire.
- Make sure portable space heaters have automatic shut-off devices should it tip over.
- Never stick a fork or knife in a plugged-in toaster to retrieve a stuck piece of bread.
- Always unplug electric devices before doing repairs.
The leading cause of accidental contact with power lines in Oregon is tree trimming or tree removal. Follow these common-sense safety tips:
- Look up! If you see a wire in the area where you want to work, call MEC at (541) 536-2126.
- Don’t build a treehouse in trees with power lines in them or near them.
- Don’t prune a limb that is near or touching a wire. Tree limbs contain water and can conduct electricity.
- If possible, let a professional do your tree trimming.
- Although the “service” wire (from the transformer to the connection at your house) usually is insulated, never consider it safe to work around. The insulation can be worn, creating a hazard.
- Remember that metal ladders and other tree-trimming equipment are excellent conductors of electricity. Stay clear of wires.
Most outdoor electrical accidents result from contact with overhead electric conductors. Here are some safety tips:
- 1 more time: Look up. You don’t actually have to touch a wire to get shocked by an overhead line. Electricity can jump to a good conductor, such as a metal ladder, if it gets too close to an energized wire.
- Always keep yourself and metal objects at least 10 feet away from power lines.
- Always use grounded, three-prong extension cords outside.
- Ground Fault Interrupters, or GFIs, are a good investment for all outdoor circuits.
- If you plan to dig more than 12 inches underground, call the Oregon One-Call Center at (800) 332-2344. This free service, funded by MEC and other utilities, locates underground utilities prior to your digging.
It isn’t uncommon to find yourself away from home when a storm hits, causing power lines to fall. Never go near a downed power line. Treat all lines as dangerous until a utility crew arrives and deals with it.
Other tips:
- If a wire falls on your car, stay inside it. If you attempt to get out and one foot touches the ground, an electrified line on your car will complete a circuit to the ground. You can be electrocuted.
- You don’t have to touch a wire to be electrocuted. Electrical current can flow through water, metal or wet ground. If you are too close, you can be hurt or killed.
- Never shoot at power line insulators.
- Never fly a kite near power lines, and never go into a tree near wires to retrieve a stuck kite.
- If you have a sailboat, always be aware of overhead power lines near marinas or areas where you will have the mast in the upright position.
Additional Resources
