More and more people are making contact with high-voltage lines. This is how you stay safe this summer

Electrical safety advocates urge people to use caution during summer fun or home improvement projects.

Ontario has seen a sharp increase in power grid contacts involving members of the public in recent years, particularly during the height of the pandemic.

Patrick Falzon, a power line safety specialist with Ontario’s Electrical Safety Authority (ESA), says the province reported an average of 16 to 20 such incidents annually between 2012 and 2018.

But those numbers have been much higher since then.

“In 2019, we had 75 grid contacts,” says Falzon, citing data on both near misses and incidents where people have been injured.

That number rose to 82 in 2020 and then dropped to 67 in 2021. Last year’s figures are not yet available.

It’s not clear exactly why the number of reported cases has increased, although part of the increase has come from people spending more time at home during the pandemic.

“What ended up happening is people were locked into their homes or their property, so homeowners decided to take on the DIY projects,” Falzon said.

Those projects could be at risk of hitting power lines, both above and below ground, if precautions are not taken.

Trees and vegetation

Trees and other vegetation are factors that utilities must manage – and they make arrangements to do so.

Falzon said this is something Ontario’s utilities need to do for the lines they own.

As Daniel McNeil, a Toronto Hydro company spokesperson, explained by email, the major city’s electric utility is “responsible for maintaining trees and vegetation around its equipment” and uses a scheduled pruning cycle to accomplish this, in addition to any emergencies . work it undertakes.

Still the website of the ESA contains safety tips for taking care of trees and doing gardening at home.

These safety issues are relevant to people living in parts of Canada where power lines are present. And other utilities also pay attention to it.

In 2021, BC Hydro reported about a 30 percent increase in “backyard logging” incidents. reported during the first year of the pandemic. As in Ontario, people were doing a lot of work on their homes and properties at the time and had dozens of power line calls. Fortunately, this uptick seems to have subsided since then, according to BC Hydro spokesperson Susie Rieder.

Call before digging

Homeowners have heard it before, but it bears repeating: Call before digging.

The safety-focused mantra refers to the need to bring in professionals to help you understand where infrastructure—such as underground power lines or gas lines—are located on a given property.

That’s important to know if you’re planning to put up a fence, add a tree or shrub to a garden or do some excavation work, whether at home, in a cottage or anywhere else.

“Always do a localization and make sure you’re not contacting anything you may not be aware of,” says Brooke Fraser, a customer management manager at Hydro One.

In Ontario, homeowners can call Ontario OneCall — a service that puts those who want to dig in contact with infrastructure owners, who ensure that the locations of underground pipes, conduits and cables are marked. In British Columbia, anyone who intends to dig must contact BC 1 Call.

Manitobans can contact Click Before Digging MB to avoid coming into contact with buried utilities.

Bruce Owen, media relations officer for Manitoba Hydro, points out that with “more and more things” being put underground, the need to make that call won’t go away.

Stay sharp after storm

Hydro One’s Fraser said people also need to be aware of how to stay safe in the aftermath of summer storms.

“You may not always be able to see the downed lines that brought down the trees,” Fraser said.

If a downed line is spotted, Fraser and other safety advocates remind the public to keep their distance and always assume the line will stay live.

“Don’t doubt it,” she said. “Just stay away and make sure you call to secure that situation.”

Stay away from lines

Over the years, there have been many tragic stories of people coming into contact with power lines.

Deaths or injuries have occurred during otherwise very harmless activities, such as when children play outside or when adults also engage in leisure activities.

With this in mind, it is important to consider where electrical cables are located when setting up for the same activities.

“Sometimes these infrastructures aren’t ideal,” says Fraser.

Fraser said a family may want to set up a swing set or other play equipment, but it’s important to understand the dangers that may be present before installing them – and also to make sure all leisure activities take place in a safe environment.

Deadly consequences

The conditions of contacts with the power grid in leisure activities vary, but the problem often arises when a person does not see the danger present.

Falzon from the ESA discussed an incident that happened last year in Ontario in which a man piloted a drone. The aircraft got stuck in a tree, which was against an invisible power line.

“There was heavy foliage around it,” Falzon explained.

The person used a high-range object to try to retrieve the object. That person died as a result of the subsequent contact with the power grid.

Falzon said a similar hazard could arise with other tools, appliances or toys in similar circumstances.

His advice is to always “look up and out” to stay safe.

Owen of Manitoba Hydro echoed that message.

“Take a moment to look up,” Owen said, reiterating the dangerous reality that if you touch a line, you could be killed.