The Enlightener

September 2002

Plug In To Safety in September
September is Electrical Safety Month in North Carolina

All North Carolina citizens depend on electricity in their daily lives. However, do we all know how to use electricity properly? Did you know that the National Safety Council reports that more than 500 unintentional deaths by electric current are caused each year in the United States, both in homes and workplaces?

Did you know that the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Council and the National Electrical Safety Foundation report that at least one U.S. citizen dies every day in an electrical accident? These startling statistics can be prevented if you know how to play it safe around electricity. An nderstanding of both the benefits and dangers of electricity can help citizens to be safer and more educated about electricity, thus preventing injuries and deaths in the future.

And that’s exactly what North Carolina’s electric cooperatives intend on doing. September is officially “North Carolina Electrical Safety Month.” Blue Ridge Electric and other electric cooperatives across North Carolina are conducting an electrical safety awareness campaign throughout the state and will specifically focus on sharing safety information with the state’s children.

North Carolina’s electric cooperatives asked Governor Michael Easley to proclaim September 2002 as “Electrical Safety Month” and on February 5, 2002, he approved this request.

Please help observe Electrical Safety Month by educating yourself and others on electrical safety with the help of this issue of The Enlightener and resources on our web site, www.Blue-RidgeEMC.com. Remember, it’s up to everyone to play it safe around electricity!

Home Safety Checkup

Take a few moments to walk around your house. You may be surprised to learn you have a safety hazard in your midst. This checklist is designed to uncover some common safety hazards. Correcting them will require only a few moments of your time and can go a long way toward keeping your home and family safe.

Kitchen/Bathroom

Locate cords so they will be far away from water when in use and NEVER touch an electrical device if you are in contact with water.

Bedroom

Check to see that your electric blanket is NOT “tucked in.” A “tucked in” blanket or one covered with another blanket may overheat and catch fire.
Check the wattage on light fixtures and lamps to make sure the light bulb wattage does not exceed the specifications on the fixture. For example, burning a 100-watt bulb in a fixture specifying a bulb not to exceed 60 watts is a fire hazard.
Check closet shelves. Items placed too close to the closet light could catch fire.

Living Room

Keep cords out of walkways.
Do not hide cords under rugs and carpet. Walking over the rug causes the cord insulation to wear off, making it a fire and safety hazard.

Laundry Room

In addition to emptying the clothes dryer lint trap each time you dry clothes, the interior door and openings where lint collects should be vacuumed periodically to remove lint buildup, which is a fire hazard.

Garage/Workshop

Use an adapter to plug three-prong plugs into a two-hole receptacle.
Never use a power tool if the grounding pin (third prong) has been removed.

For more information on electrical safety, contact the National Fire Protection agency at www.nfpa.org and the National Electrical Safety Foundation at www.nesf.org.

Members Only News
-For Members of Blue Ridge Electric

Helping Your Kids Play it Safe

Every day, parents tell their kids to play it safe. We talk about the dangers of busy roads and talking to people we don’t know, but are we teaching children how to be safe around electricity?

Simply pointing out to children where overhead power lines, underground power lines, and the meter are located and urging them to keep their distance could save a life.
Climbing and exploring is a natural part of being a kid. But every time a child climbs a tree located near power lines, there’s potential for a mishap. Explain to children they should never climb trees or on top of structures near power lines because coming into contact with the line can result in severe injury or even death.

Substations are also off-limits places. While marked with “High Voltage” and “Warning” signs, children often find these dangerous areas attractive to explore. Explain to your kids the importance of staying away from substation areas and tell them not to enter the fenced area for any reason – the high voltage inside can be deadly.

Include electrical safety when telling your kids the safety rules. The dangers of electricity can be a lifesaving lesson you’ll be glad you shared!

Call Before You Dig

If you’re doing outdoor work that involves digging, call Blue Ridge Electric 48 hours before breaking ground for your safety. Because power lines may be buried underground, this one telephone call could prevent an accident. Coming into contact with an energized power line isn’t only dangerous, it can also be fatal.

Underground power lines can be marked for you by the cooperative. Keep safe. Contact Blue Ridge Electric before beginning any project that involves digging!

Photo_CEO Johnson The Perspective

An Editorial by Chief Executive Officer Doug Johnson
Priority on Safety

In the utility business, safety is a part of everything we do. It’s critical to providing reliable electric service to our members, and it’s equally important to ensure the well-being of our employees, members, and everyone in our communities.

Governor Easley’s designation of September as North Carolina Electrical Safety Month is especially gratifying for an industry that places paramount importance on the safety of our members, employees, and system. The activities and efforts this month will help further the public’s knowledge about how to be safe around electricity.

Educating the public is a key to ensuring safety. We make regular efforts through this newsletter, our web site, in our contacts with the local media, and as we work in the communities we serve to explain potential dangers of – as well as safety measures to take when working around – electricity. This issue of The Enlightener contains a number of important safety messages and our web site has recently been updated to include a “Play It Safe” safety series.

While safety is most important from a personal level, it is also important from a financial perspective. Much like your own personal insurance, curtailing accidents and injuries helps contain insurance and other costs to your cooperative. That’s another reason we focus on safety – it pays off for members by controlling cooperative costs.

Blue Ridge Electric’s safety record has been recognized by the North Carolina Department of Labor year after year as one of the most exemplary in the state. The cooperative also adheres to high safety standards and undergoes a rigorous review process every two years to remain accredited on a national level.

I believe our safety program is successful because it’s led by employee teams in each of our service areas. While our safety program is coordinated by a safety and training manager dedicated to ensuring we adhere to regulatory and industrial standards, it is the commitment and attention of each and every employee that makes it work.

At Blue Ridge Electric, we’re keeping safety “on the table” and on the forefront of the minds of our employees. Through the statewide safety focus in September, we hope to help you, our members, become even more aware of the role safety plays with electricity. As a member-owned cooperative, looking out for your safety is important to us!

Safety Trivia Test: True or False?

A live electric line has fallen on your car – you should get out of the car to safety.

False - Stay in the car until help arrives. It is dangerous to try to escape the vehicle with a live electric line on the car.

Drowning was the number one cause of death during Hurricane Bertha.

False - More people were electrocuted because they didn’t properly ground their emergency generators. Some were also sent to hospitals for carbon monoxide poisoning because their generators didn’t have adequate ventilation.

It is safe to climb a tree located near a power line as long as the limbs aren’t touching the line.

False - It is not safe to climb a tree located near a power line at any time. Electricity has the ability to “jump” from the power line to the tree, thus electrocuting the “tree climber.”

It is safe to touch a power line with a pole, antenna, or other object.

False - It’s life threatening to touch a power line with any object.

Using a telephone during a lightening storm is dangerous.

True - Lightning can strike telephone and electrical wires and travel into your house, through your phone cord, into your telephone, to the handset, and shock you! Cordless phones are not dangerous because there is no physical connection to the wires but their use is not recommended during a storm since the person you’re calling may not have a cordless phone.

Published monthly by Blue Ridge Electric Membership Corporation for its 51,731 members.