 These power lines are kept high and away from us because they are dangerous. Most of us in construction recognize that. Yet, it's the power lines that we work with every day that are just as dangerous. In fact, each year hundreds of construction workers die from power line contacts. It's a tragedy that you can prevent. First, you must be trained in the risks and how to prevent them. Many accidents occur because managers overestimate the ability of crane operators to determine the clearance distance available. Once management has been trained to spot hazards, the task of creating a safe worksite begins. A safe worksite is important for many reasons. Besides the obvious cost of the pain and anguish of the victims and their families, there is the cost of profits that are lost forever. Direct losses can come from increased medical and indemnity payments and liability lawsuits. The more accidents you have, the worse your safety record is. And the higher your workers' comp rates will be. And realize that contractors have been sued by subcontractors, engineers and owners as well. Accidents also cost you indirectly. You might see work delays, reduced crew efficiency. Increased overtime and additional costs for cleanup, repair and equipment replacement. But whether direct or indirect, these are losses you don't have to see and costs you don't have to pay. But that means doing something about the power line hazards on job sites. It starts with training. The training program should include such things as identification of high risk activities and equipment. Ways to eliminate or reduce these risks. OSHA requirements, job site specific requirements and hazards. Emergency plan development and emergency response. Both managers and workers need to be trained in these areas. Worker training should emphasize recognition and avoidance of job site hazards. Site specific procedures and emergency response to different types of energized contacts. Management training should focus on planning work and inspecting the work site to recognize power line hazards before mobilizing workers. This will allow for a site safety plan which will eliminate or control the risks. Training is important because while we all should know that power lines can kill, too often they're not taken seriously. Also, some people have the misconception that the black coating on some lines is insulation designed to protect anyone contacting the line. That's dead wrong. Each construction site should have a written plan. It also needs a site survey, ideally several weeks before the project begins. Ask yourself, where are the power lines on the job site? It's your job to find all the overhead and underground power lines that could place your workers and company at risk. Then think about the type of work you or your employees will be doing. Will you have high-reaching equipment like cranes, drilling rigs, or concrete pumpers on the job site? Will your workers be using ladders or long-handled tools around power lines? These are questions you need to answer. Also, be aware of power lines around the site and whether any lines will go over service roads. Pay close attention to trucks, particularly dump trucks. If the truck bed isn't down when the worker drives away, it can easily contact the overhead lines. And if you'll be digging, find out how much notice the local one-call system or utility needs to locate and mark the lines. Now that you know where the hazards are, how are you going to get rid of or control them? You can eliminate the risk of contacts by asking the local utility to de-energize or move the lines. Shielding is another method of worker protection. Even though shielding won't eliminate the hazard, it can reduce it. But the minimum clearance distance still must be maintained. All of these methods require pre-planning. For example, scheduling utility crews can sometimes take a couple of days' notice or even weeks if a line must be moved. Other options are moving or changing the work activity or using shorter tools and materials. Your first choice in preventing power line contacts should be to eliminate the hazard. But this isn't always possible. In these cases, you'll need to do some things to at least reduce the possibility of a contact. Your options may include using an observer when doing lifts with a crane, using insulated sleeves or other barrier protection installed by the power company, using flagged warning lines or protective technologies. You might also use non-conductive tools or materials or restrict access to high-risk areas to train the personnel only. The trained manager, having looked over the site, is now ready to prepare a job site plan. The plan will list the power line exposures and detail how each will be addressed. An integral part of this site plan is the emergency plan. The emergency plan should describe how the company will respond to power line contacts. The plan should include phone numbers for the power utility, local emergency medical services, and hospital. These will be posted at the site and available at all times when work is done. Emergency response training of workers and management should include CPR training and information about approaching and assisting a person still in contact with an energized line or equipment in contact with the line. In the tragic event that the plan has to be used, you'll want to investigate thoroughly. This goes for near misses as well. You should look for the underlying causes of any accident or near miss because they will point to weak areas in your program. By addressing the root causes of any mishap, you can prevent occurrences in the future. Also, following an accident, you should stay involved with the injured worker, the hospital, and your insurance carrier. This way you can work to help the employees return to work and a normal life. Too often injured workers are lost in the world of doctors, physical therapists, lab technicians, insurance claims adjusters, and so on. By keeping in touch with the worker and their family, you can help them through a difficult and often frightening time. Contractors that help injured employees in this way build loyalty in the workforce and reduce insurance and litigation costs. Unfortunately, power line contacts produce too many fatalities. Power lines kill. Because of this, they can result in significant losses. Remember, a power line injury or death means much more than just lost profits. You can avoid these losses by making your job site safer and by developing an effective site safety plan with an effective emergency plan component as part of your job site plan. With a well-developed emergency plan in hand, you can work to avoid ever having to use it. Then you won't ever have to tell a family member that their loved one is never coming home again.