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Electrical Hazards

This document discusses electrical hazards and safety precautions around overhead power lines. It notes that electricity can cause electrocution, electrical burns, and electric shock. It also describes what overhead power lines are and some of the main risks, such as using long equipment like cranes or ladders near power lines. The document outlines four key steps to ensure safety when working near overhead lines: 1) planning and preparation such as identifying any power lines, 2) eliminating dangers if possible by diverting or isolating lines, 3) controlling access by erecting barriers, and 4) controlling work by following safety precautions like maintaining clearance distances.

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Muhammad Uzair
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52 views3 pages

Electrical Hazards

This document discusses electrical hazards and safety precautions around overhead power lines. It notes that electricity can cause electrocution, electrical burns, and electric shock. It also describes what overhead power lines are and some of the main risks, such as using long equipment like cranes or ladders near power lines. The document outlines four key steps to ensure safety when working near overhead lines: 1) planning and preparation such as identifying any power lines, 2) eliminating dangers if possible by diverting or isolating lines, 3) controlling access by erecting barriers, and 4) controlling work by following safety precautions like maintaining clearance distances.

Uploaded by

Muhammad Uzair
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Name: Muhammad Uzair

Roll No: EE-21026


Section: A
Engineering Drawing report

Electrical Hazards
Electricity is a hazard, as it has the potential to cause harm, but if properly managed, the
likelihood of harm being caused is minimal. Although, the severity of electrical hazards
(sometimes referred to as consequence) when things go wrong will potentially be fatality or life
changing.

What injuries can be caused by electrical hazards?


The main injuries caused by electrical hazards are:
1. Electrocution.
2. Electrical burns, which occur when the electrical current enters and exits the body.
3. Electric shock caused when contact is made with a live wire or equipment that is not
grounded.
4. Secondary injuries resulting from the effects of shock, such as being thrown to the
ground or falling off a ladder.

Overhead Power lines


An overhead power line is an electric power
transmission line suspended by towers or poles. Since
most of the insulation is provided by air, overhead
power lines are generally the lowest-cost method of
transmission for large quantities of electric power.
Towers for support of the lines are made of wood (as-
grown or laminated), steel (either lattice structures or
tubular poles), concrete, aluminum, and occasionally
reinforced plastics. The bar wire conductors on the line
are generally made of aluminum (either plain or
reinforced with steel or sometimes composite
materials), though some copper wires are used in
medium-voltage distribution and low-voltage
connections to customer premises.

What we need to know


Accidental contact with live overhead power lines kills people and causes many serious injuries
every year. People are also harmed when a person or object gets too close to a line and a
flashover occurs. Work involving high vehicles or long equipment is particularly high risk, such
as;
In Construction – Lorry mounted cranes (such as Hiabs or Palingers), Mobile Elevated Work
Platforms (MEWP's), scaffold poles, tipper vehicles, cranes, ladders;
In Agriculture – combines, sprayer booms, materials handlers, tipper vehicles, ladders, irrigation
pipes, polytunnels; Remember:
1. Going close to a live overhead line can result in a flashover that may kill. Touching a
power line is not necessary for danger.
2. Voltages lower than 230 volts can kill and injure people.
3. Do not mistake overhead power lines on wooden poles for telephone wires.
4. Electricity can bypass wood, plastic or rubber, if it is damp or dirty, and cause fatal
shocks. Don't rely on gloves or rubber boots to protect you.

What we need to do
Plan and manage work near electric overhead power lines so that risks from accidental contact
or close proximity to the lines are adequately controlled.
Safety precautions will depend on the nature of the work and will be essential even when work
near the line is of short duration.
Safety can be achieved by a combination of measures:
1. Planning and preparation
2. Eliminating the danger
3. Controlling the access
4. Controlling the work

1. Planning and preparation


The first step is to find out whether there is any overhead power line within or immediately next
to the work area, or across any access route.
Information will be available from the local electricity supplier or Distribution Network Operator
(DNO). If any overhead lines are found, you should assume that they are live unless proved
otherwise by their owners.
If there are any overhead lines over the work area, near the site boundaries, or over access
roads to the work area, consult the owners of the lines so that the proposed plan of work can be
discussed.
Allow sufficient time for lines to be diverted or made dead, or for other precautions to be taken
as described below.
2. Eliminating the danger
You can eliminate the danger by:
Avoidance – find out if the work really has to be carried out under or near overhead lines,
and can't be done somewhere else. Make sure materials (such as bales or spoil) are not placed
near overhead lines, and temporary structures (such as polytunnels) are erected outside safe
clearance distances;
Diversion – arrange for overhead lines to be diverted away from the work area; or Isolation –
arrange for lines to be made dead while the work is being done.
In some cases you may need to use a suitable combination of these measures, particularly
where overhead lines pass over permanent work areas.
If the danger cannot be eliminated, you should manage the risk by controlling access to, and
work beneath, overhead power lines.
3. Controlling the access
Where there is no scheduled work or requirement for access under the lines, barriers should be
erected at the correct clearance distance away from the line to prevent close approach. The
safe clearance distance should be ascertained from the Distribution Network Operator (DNO).
HSE guidance documents Avoidance of danger from overhead electric power lines and
Electricity at Work: Forestry and Arboriculture also provide advice on safe clearance distances
and how barriers should be constructed. Where there is a requirement to pass beneath the
lines, defined passageways should be made.
The danger area should be made as small as possible by restricting the width of the
passageway to the minimum needed for the safe crossing of plant. The passageway should
cross the route of the overhead line at right angles if possible.
4. Controlling the work
If work beneath live overhead power lines cannot be avoided, barriers, goal posts and warning
notices should be provided. Where field work is taking place it may be impractical to erect
barriers and goal posts around the overhead lines - these are more appropriate for use at
gateways, on tracks and at access points to farm yards.
The following precautions may also be needed to manage the risk:
Clearance – the safe clearance required beneath the overhead lines should be found by
contacting the Distribution Network Operator (DNO);
Exclusion – vehicles, plant, machinery, equipment, or materials that could reach beyond the
safe clearance distance should not be taken near the line;
Modifications – Vehicles such as cranes, excavators and tele-handlers should be modified
by the addition of suitable physical restraints so that they cannot reach beyond the safe
clearance distances, measures should be put in place to ensure these restraints are effective
and cannot be altered or tampered with;
Maintenance – operators of high machinery should be instructed not carry out any work on
top of the machinery near overhead power lines;
Supervision – access for plant and materials and the working of plant should be under the
direct supervision of a suitable person appointed to ensure that safety precautions are
observed.

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