Motorist Trapped In Vehicle Surrounded By Wires
[Updated] Fire crews along with BELCO personnel responded after a motorist was “ trapped in a vehicle that was surrounded by live electrical wires” today.
A BFRS spokesperson said, “At 1:33 pm on Thursday, July 15th 2021 BFRS Dispatch receive a report of a fallen BELCO pole on North Shore just west of C Mart. The caller was trapped in a vehicle that was surrounded by live electrical wires from the pole.
“One appliance from Hamilton Station was dispatched to the incident with four firefighters.
“Upon arrival fire crews found one pole had fallen with wires surrounding a car. Fire crews along with BELCO personnel removed the vehicle from danger. There were no injuries and no damage to the vehicle. The cause of the incident is under investigation by Police.”
The incident has resulted in some power outages in the area.
Update 5.44pm: Shelly Leman, Managing Director Transmission Distribution & Retail said, “At approximately 1:30 pm on Thursday July 15th Bermuda Electric Light Company [BELCO] received a report of an accident on North Shore Road to the west of C Mart which resulted in a broken pole and downed wires. The initial report was that a delivery truck had become entangled in telecommunication cables which resulted in the pole breaking and utility lines landing on a nearby private car.
“BELCO crews were dispatched and ensured that the de-energized lines were safely removed from the car. There were no injuries reported and no damage to the vehicle. The downed pole resulted in a power outage that initially affected approximately 575 customers.
“BELCO crews re-routed power to restore electricity to 415 customers with approximately 160 customers remaining without power at 5 pm as work continued to replace the damaged pole and reattach all lines.
“As a reminder, if a member of the public ever comes across a downed power line, which can pose extreme danger, they should always assume the downed line is energized and dangerous and stay at least 35 feet away.
“If a person is in a car and wires fall on the car they should stay in the car until a BELCO employee arrives and advises them it is safe to exit the car. Do not run from a fallen line. Running may cause your legs to bridge current from a higher to lower voltage and you may receive a shock. Instead, keep your legs together and shuffle away with both feet on the ground. Shuffle a safe distance (35 feet or more) away from the downed line and other utility poles.”
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Category: Accidents and fires, All, News
This has always been my fear while riding a motorbike on windy days. The poles aren’t individually inspected but rather are sunk in the ground & receive no proactive attention to prevent such an accident. By the time you see a pole receiving attention, it has already failed.