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Don’t Let Summer Fun Become Deadly: Summer Electrical Safety Tips from Root Electric
As the weather gets warmer, it’s important to remember that summer poses several electrical safety hazards that you may not be aware of. Our team of Northern Virginia residential electricians has compiled a list of summer electrical safety tips that you and your family should be aware of. Keep these in mind and you will enjoy a much safer summer!
Summer Electrical Safety Tips: Outdoor Hazards
Summer is the time when everyone wants to play outside, so it is important that everyone knows what possible electrical safety hazards to avoid in the out-of-doors. Go around the outside of your home and through your neighborhood with your family and show them where telephone poles and electrical lines are located. Explain the following so that everyone understands the dangers associated with them:
Never play near or touch a power line with any part of your body, a toy, a stick, or any other object whatsoever. Assume at all times that any power lines you see are live and dangerous. If you see a downed power line, stay well away and report it to your local utility company immediately.
Never approach an electrical substation (or downed power lines) for any reason whatsoever. Period. If a friend, family member or a pet has entered this area, do not try to rescue them yourself—call 911 immediately.
Never climb on or play around a utility pole. In fact, never post any signs or flyers on utility poles either as this can endanger you and utility workers that have to work on those poles.
This may seem like a repeat of the other outdoor summer electrical safety tips, but never throw shoes or articles of clothing up onto power lines, and never try to retrieve any object already hanging from a power line. There are safer ways to celebrate summer than this.
To avoid getting kites, model aircraft or any other airborne toys stuck in power lines, play with these things in wide open spaces like parks or fields far away from power lines.
Kids love to climb trees in the summer, but they should never climb trees that are too close to power lines; even if the tree isn’t touching a line, the extra weight from someone climbing the tree could cause a branch to touch the line, which would be dangerous. In fact, if you feel that any trees in your yard or neighborhood are too close to power lines, talk with your local utility about having them trimmed or possibly removed.
Keep an eye on the weather. Almost 100 people die each year, and another 500 are severely injured from lightning strikes. If a thunderstorm is approaching, go indoors and stay there until the danger has passed.
