Central Maine Power Urges Caution When Clearing Snow

CMP News

Central Maine Power Company, 83 Edison Drive, Augusta, ME 04336 (207) 622-NEWS 

Corporate Communications - corpcomm@cmpco.com 

 

 

Release: Immediate  

February 5, 2015

 

Central Maine Power Urges Caution When Clearing Snow

With an abundance of snow needing removal from dooryards, parking areas, and roofs,
utility urges homeowners and contractors to stay clear of power lines and equipment

 

AUGUSTA, Maine As Maine continues its recovery from a series of winter storms, Central Maine Power Co., a subsidiary of Iberdrola USA, is urging homeowners and contractors working on snow removal to be mindful of overhead power lines.

 

"Ladders, roof rakes, bucket loaders, dump trucks, and other equipment can all conduct electricity, and contacting a power line with any of these items could be deadly, said Gail Rice, CMP spokesperson. We have had several incidents this week where snow removal mishaps disrupted service to customers, and the people doing this work were lucky not to have been hurt."

 

The utility points out that the coating on some power lines particularly service cables to homes is not designed to protect workers from a serious electrical contact. And because electricity is always seeking a path to ground, a worker, equipment, or tools could become part of that path and risk serious injury, or even death, by accidentally touching a conductor.

 

Central Maine Power offers the following tips for staying safe while removing snow:

 

  • Plan ahead. Take time to look at your job site and identify hazards. Be sure to look up and check for electric cables and other equipment.
  • Keep a safe distance of at least 10 feet between yourself (or tools/building materials you are using) and power lines.
    Carry ladders horizontally and close to the ground as you move around your job site and look up and maintain safe clearance when positioning them.
  • Look up and maintain safe clearance when raising a bucket or the bed of a dump truck.
  • Don't let anyone touch a bucket loader, dump truck, or other equipment when it's operating near power lines that person could become a path to ground if there is accidental contact.
  • Leave the cutting and pruning of trees near power lines to professionals. A tree or limb that comes in contact with a power line could be deadly.
  • Call CMP at 1.800.750.4000 and ask for a safety inspection if you expect to be working near power lines. Our trained personnel will check the service cable, weatherhead, and related equipment, and if necessary, place protective insulation over exposed conductors.
  •  Remember No line is safe to touch, ever!

 

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About Central Maine Power Company (CMP): Central Maine Power Company, a subsidiary of Iberdrola USA, is Maine's largest electricity transmission and distribution utility. The company delivers about 9 billion kilowatt hours of electricity annually to more than 600,000 homes and businesses, representing about 80% of Maine's annual consumer sales of electricity. J.D. Power and Associates has ranked the company #1 in customer satisfaction seven times. For more information, visit www.cmpco.com.

About Iberdrola USA: Iberdrola USA is the U.S. subsidiary of global energy leader Iberdrola, S.A. The Iberdrola USA companies employ about 5,000 people with operations in 24 states from New England to the West Coast, providing electricity generation, transmission and distribution, natural gas storage and distribution, and energy services. For more information, please visit our website: www.iberdrolausa.com. Follow us on Twitter: @IberdrolaUSA 

 

 

 


 

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