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Monday, July 8, 2019
Question:
Hi I am curious regarding the safety of a broken light pole near my home. 3 months ago, a light pole was knocked over by a snowplow. The light pole is not owned by the city I live in but rather by a local power company, and the city pays them a monthly rent for all the lights in the town. After the fiberglass pole was knocked over, there was approximately 3 feet of the pole left coming out of the ground, with of course a hole in the top that they covered with an orange cone. There is also a hole in the pole about 10 inches off the ground. After questioning the local power company about when the new one is coming, as it has been several months, I randomly said something like, well it isn’t live right, no one can get hurt by it. They informed me that yet it was live, as they do not have a shut off at each pole, so would have to turn off all the lights on our entire and not just the one. After doing some more looking with more experience people, they pulled the wires out from the hole on the side, the wires had nothing on the end, there was a ground wire, and another wire that was “live” not sure what the voltage was, but they had checked that and said to me “enough to kill a kid easily” as of course my kids safety is what I am worried about, not so much an adult…… The guys were there looking at this with me (not from the power company remind you) did put electrical tape on the end of the wire. I have contacted the power company numerous times and I get no where. Another neighbor put it on facebook, their response was that they covered the hole (not the one on top with the cone over it but the one on the side right up from ground) and they covered it with what looks like black duct tape.
I am assuming this cannot be to code – however I am having a hard time finding what codes are in relation to power/utility companies etc.
Thank you, Kara Trom
A
Answer:
Hey Kara thanks for your question. This might not be a popular answer for the utilities but if you believe a hazard exists, that is not properly guarded, call 911. That will create a record and should get the appropriate authorities involved to determine what needs to be done. The concern could be for adults, children and animals based on what you describe. Utilities are usually required to comply with the National Electrical Safety Code by Public Service commissions. If the 911 call doesn't generate an acceptable response contact the public service commission.