FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Nov. 16, 2000
CONTACT: Leslie Peterson, 720-962-7052, peterson@wapa.gov
Vandals almost turn lights off
LAKEWOOD, Colo.—On Nov. 13, two electric utilities discovered vandals had
damaged two different transmission lines by shooting tower insulators.
Fortunately, with the recent cold snap, the incident resulted in no power
outages.
The vandalism took place 2 miles outside of Craig, Colo., not far from
the Moffat County dump.
The damaged lines belong to Western Area Power Administration, a Federal
bulk transmission provider, and Yampa Valley Electric Association, a local
electricity provider for Craig and the surrounding area.
“Three of our 230-kV steel towers were damaged,” reported Western Foreman
Dave Tiede. “On one structure, 12 out of 17 insulators were shot out. On
another, we could see a bullet lodged in a broken insulator. The act was
pretty flagrant.” It took Western’s Craig line crew one day and $10,000
to fix the structures.
For Yampa Valley, the damage was worse. “Eleven insulator strings on
three structures were hit,” reported Bud Stanley, YVEA operations manager.
“Fortunately, we didn’t loose power on the line. About 3,000 people south
and west of Craig would have been in the dark.” It took Yampa line crews
two days
to fix the 69-kV towers, costing $14,000—which ratepayers will indirectly
pay.
“The area of the vandalism is often a party place for local kids,”
noted Deputy Donald of the Moffat County Sheriff’s department. “But at
this point, we’re not sure who did it. We’re still investigating.”
Shooting at power lines may seem like entertaining target practice
to some, but it’s fraught with danger. A similar incident took place on
one of Western’s Arizona transmission lines. “In that case, the lines actually
came down and the individual shooting came in contact with the live lines,”
explained Western Safety and Security Specialist Pam Moody. “He ended in
a hospital with severe burns to his legs and groin. This incident could
have easily been a fatality.”
What’s more, if an outage occurs, it can cause a system disturbance
that potentially could have far-reaching impacts to literally thousands
of people.
“People just need to stop and think about the risks and dangers of
shooting power lines. And besides, it’s against the law,” said a frustrated
Tiede.
To report vandalism, you can call Yampa Electric at 970-824-6593, the
Moffat Sheriff Department at 970-824-4495 or Western’s 24-hour dispatch
number at 1-800-835-0547.
Western Area Power Administration is one of four Federal power marketing
administrations. The agency annually markets and transmits more than 10,000
megawatts of power from 55 hydropower plants owned and operated by the
U.S. Bureau of Reclamation and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in 15 central
and western states. Western’s wholesale customers include cities and town,
rural electric cooperatives, public utility and irrigation districts, Indian
tribes and other nonprofit entities.
Serving the West with Federal hydropower