Electric Co-op demonstrates high-voltage dangers at Expo

MOULTRIE — The Georgia Electric Cooperative’s exhibit at the 2017 Sunbelt Ag Expo in Moultrie provided visitors with an up-close-and-personal demonstration about the dangers of high-voltage electricity.

A fully functioning portable power line and transformer were set up at the Expo so visitors could see what happens when various objects or materials, such as a wet cotton string, a limb or even a sausage, come into contact with high voltage.

The demonstration produced some startling results.

Linemen working at the exhibit took all necessary safety precautions and, one by one, placed the objects in contact with the high-voltage line.

“We always tell people, youngsters especially, about the dangers of high voltage,” Carroll EMC lineman Pat Albright said. “Even something like a cotton string, especially if wet, can produce catastrophic results. So we warn them to be extremely careful when flying kites near power lines. If that kite touches those wires, it could be fatal. You could possibly be electrocuted.”

According to Albright, people often ask how a bird can land on a power line or a squirrel can run down the line without any effect.

“People ask all the time about birds and squirrels being on power lines and why they don’t get killed,” Albright said. “Well, a lot of times they do. As linemen, we are taught to work on one thing at a time. If I’m working on the primary out of the bucket, I only work on the primary and don’t touch the primary line. Don’t touch a grounded device, and we don’t touch the pole. If you touch both lines or complete that circuit by touching another potential, you are cooked. This is true for birds and squirrels. If that animal touches something else that is grounded, then bang.”

The crowd gasped as Albright, with an insulated pole, touched a wire between the two lines and a large arc of electricity flashed between the two.

“See, that could have been you guys,” Oscar the robot, Georgia’s Electric Cooperative mascot who was a big hit with the kids, said.

According to Albright, it is common to find dead squirrels on top of blown transformers.

To demonstrate another common occurrence in south Georgia, contact between trees and power lines, Albright had a green pine limb placed against the electrified line. Almost immediately,y the limb began to smoke. It was quickly removed before it caught fire.

“I have worked right-of-ways for about the last 12 years, and a lot of people don’t understand about cutting trees away from power lines. There are only two reasons to do it,” Albright said. “Right of ways are cut for safety and reliability. If the limbs get in the wires, your lights start blinking. But more important than that, it needs to be safe. Trees are a lot like us. They are full of moisture and water. So if a tree falls over in the line and for whatever reason it doesn’t kill the line and then you walk up and touch that tree, it can be deadly.”

For the finale, Albright picked an object that would emulate the effects of a human body touching a high-voltage line.

“I tell people all the time that the reason we use a sausage is because they are made up kind of like our bodies,” Albright said. “Muscle, fat and water all wrapped up in a nice little skin that kind of resembles us in a way.”

Oscar the robot provided some comic relief saying, “And it’s cheaper than using a kid, right?”

The crowd of children that had gathered for the demonstration laughed.

“Or a robot,” Albright countered. “But in all seriousness, this part of the demonstration really hits home with line workers. Line personnel are killed every year. The No. 1 reason linemen get killed is that they are not using their safety gear, not wearing their gloves or not using their grounds.”

One of the linemen helping Albright stuck a full 13 inch Kielbasa sausage on a wire, secured it to his insulated pole and waited for Albright’s signal.

“I call this (sausage) my sacrificial lineman,” Albright said. “He got up this morning and had an argument with his wife or just got up in a bad mood and, for whatever reason, wasn’t paying attention to what he was doing. This is what could happen.”

Albright gave the signal and the sausage touched the line. A bolt of high-voltage electricity exploded out of the sausage, jumping several feet into the air. Only a small burned portion of the sausage remained on the pole, sizzling and popping.

“This is a pretty good example of what would happen to us,” Albright said. “You can see the meat fall apart. A high-voltage injury is kind of like a bullet wound. It has a small entry wound and a large exit wound. That’s what happens with electricity. When it goes in, there will be just a little black dot in a hand, arm or elbow, but where it comes out there is a large wound. Most of time when a worker comes into contact with such voltage, they either lose their life or they lose a limb.

“The electricity super-heats the tissue and moisture and burns as it’s going through. The internal part of the body can cook up to three days after a contact, depending on the severity and the voltage. It goes through the bones, muscle tissue, and everything. That is why so many people lose their lives when they make contact with this kind of electricity.”

Oscar the Robot summed up the demonstration: “So, kids and parents, don’t touch it.”

Albright has worked for Carroll EMC for 39 years.

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