11 replies to this topic

[Boshnaq]

Hello all,
First Happy new year to all forum members.

Second, Our company is undergoing a project where at one stage of our work we would have to Dismantle a stretch of Overhead line. Being the Companies site engineer i would like to make sure that i am aware of the right SAFE procedure to follow while dismantling the overhead line.
Here is basic procedure i will follow:

1. Check all PPE equipment for safety. (Hard Hats are rated to work on or near Overhead lines.)(Rubber gloves tested to be with out air leaks.)
2. Shutdown and De-energization of the stretch of overhead line we are going to work on.
3. Connect the new dead underground system to the existing Overhead system that's going to be intact after work is done.
4. for the stretch that's going to be removed, I would tie a nylon rope to each phase at the H-Pole where dismantling is to be started, and the nylon rope to be of sufficient length and be tied to the H-pole.
5. Each phase cable would be disconnected from its respective tension insulator and the cable then slowly lowered by the nylon rope that has been tied to it earlier.
6. After all cables been dismantled, A Lines man would climb to the top of the pole and remove all Brackets, Insulators found at the top of the wooden poles.
7. A crane comes in to lift the Wooden pole, after the Steel Wire has been properly attached to the wooden pole, excavation around the pole would start, and dismantling from its respective wooden block commenced.

I would like a review of this procedure, if i am missing any steps or if i am unclear on any of the steps above, i would love and appreciate any help possible.

[olo131]

Welcome Aboard

There are lots of power guys here and most will answer your question so pull up a chair and post what you think

olo131

[Boshnaq]

Thank you Olo :)

i have also found this pdf file, i am going to our work site right now (no internet available), trying to piece up a new updated procedure, will post when i get back what i could gather.

http://www.pdhonline...s/e111/e111.pdf

[System Tech Senior]

Welcome Aboard!!!

[topgroove]

Done this job a thousand times. Without a picture of the job your gonna do I have to be carefull what I say. The thing to remember when dropping conducter is you will be changing strain on the poles. Make damn sure the poles are properly guyed when you release strain. When you say tie a nylon rope to the conducter... well,, that scares the hell out of me... I would hope your gonna use an appropiate grip on the wire. Sending a man up a pole in his belt an hooks to remove hardware on a pole after the conductors have been let off is not only dangerous its just plain stupid. In fact now that I think about it maybe you should'nt even be doing a job like this. Maybe you should let the professionals like us do it. A thousand things can go wrong when your dealing with poles that have been in the ground for decades and it takes only one to get someone killed.

[aussie marty]

basically the whole process is done in reverse to building a new line but not a job to be done by the inexperienced as alot of factors come into play
examples are the length of the spans,size of the conductor,the age of the poles and proximty to live nearby conductors.
as already said,when dropping wires the whole make-up of the line changes.that is non load bearing poles can become load bearing poles and must be stayed accordingly and crossarms will twist.
if the line is old and the poles have been in the ground for a while,all poles should have a below groundline inspection done before anyone climbs it or take the quick and easy option and use a bucket truck to cleanskin the poles.not to mention the safe way to do it.

by the sound of it you are new to this type of thing,which is allright as we have to start somewhere,just make sure your crew are on the ball and know what they are doing and you are on the job watching and learning for next time.

nearly forgot using nylon rope could be very dodgy if it is long spans as with lowering or raising wires it is an unknown weight.we generally use flexible wire rope.it might be overkill but we know for sure that it won't snap.a good liney can work out generally whether good thick nylon rope will do the job for small wire and very short spans.

i have been in this game on and off for about 14 years and still learn things.anyone that says they know everything about the poweline game are generally full of s#$%

cheers marty

[Boshnaq]

Thank you all for your support, I know i am not that experienced in this, that is the reason i am trying to gather as much information i can before start my work to try to minimize the risk involved.

attached here with a copy of risk assessment form.

Attached Files

•  Dismantle_of_Overhead_line.doc   47K   57 downloads

[aussie marty]

mate you are definetly heading in the right direction by putting the safety of the workers first.
without knowing the job offering anymore advice is only guesswork by me.
the best advice is to take the no.1 liney doing the job to have a bo-peep at the job and listen to what he has to say as there is more than one way to skin a rabbit as his approach may be different but no less safer.

hope it all goes well and all the boys are there at the end of the day to enjoy a few frothhy ones.

cheers marty

[topgroove]

Linesman injured in fall from uprooted utility pole



(single page view)
(view as multiple pages)By Mike LaBella
Staff Writer




HAVERHILL — A linesman plummeted more than 30 feet from a utility pole that became uprooted at the Renaissance Golf Club, and while he lay in pain on the ground, the pole fell on him.

Steve Livingston, an employee of Halpin Line Construction of Weymouth, was airlifted to Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston and was reported in fair condition last night.

The hospital declined to describe his injuries, but co-workers said he suffered serious injuries, including possibly two broken legs. Co-workers at the scene said Livingston is from Jamaica.

The accident occurred around 3 p.m. yesterday between the 11th and 12th holes of the Renaissance Golf Club, a private course bordered by Kenoza Street and East Broadway.

It was the second incident in the city in less than 24 hours involving the toppling of utility poles due to high wind.

Five utility poles fell over along Salem Street in Bradford Sunday night forcing a portion of the road to be closed overnight while power lines were reconnected. There were no injuries in that incident.

Don Doughty of Woburn, a superintendent for Halpin Line Construction, said Livingston was working about 34 feet off the ground disconnecting unused electric power lines from the top of the utility pole when a gust of wind knocked the pole over and onto one of the golfing greens.

He said Livingston, whose age is thought to be 34, came crashing to the ground and the utility pole landed on top of him.

"We were removing power lines that had been replaced by underground lines," Doughty said. "I hope he's going to be all right. It's not too often this kind of thing happens."

One co-worker, Robert McAtee, said Livingston was not breathing after falling. McAtee said he administered mouth-to-mouth resuscitation to Livingston while waiting for an ambulance to arrive.

"He was in a lot of pain and was complaining about his legs," McAtee said.

Police termed it an industrial accident and said they were waiting for Occupational Safety and Health Administration officials to arrive to investigate the cause.

[strange052]

Don Doughty of Woburn, a superintendent for Halpin Line Construction, said Livingston was working about 34 feet off the ground disconnecting unused electric power lines from the top of the utility pole when a gust of wind knocked the pole over and onto one of the golfing greens.

He said Livingston, whose age is thought to be 34, came crashing to the ground and the utility pole landed on top of him.

"We were removing power lines that had been replaced by underground lines," Doughty said. "I hope he's going to be all right. It's not too often this kind of thing happens.

I do hope this guys will be ok, but a very tragic example of what could and does go wrong.

[Lightningrod]

If a pole is that shaky or in that bad of shape that it fell when the wires were removed then it wasn't tested properly for depth, rot or damage. I hope the young man makes a full recovery and he and others learn from what happened.

[Boshnaq]

I would just like to thank everyone here for their help and i would like to Proudly say that we have completed the job safely with no incidents to report. This would not have been done if it was not for your guidance as you have shown me things that otherwise might have been missed.