What is the actual professional way to deal with downed live power lines? I have seen a few ice storms and car crashes which left live sizzling wires on the road, and I don't actually know any response to that other than 'stay away.' When the power company guys survey the scene, what do they actually look for, and what is their general plan to render the lines safe? What equipment do they use to test for dangers?
Which part of "stay away" is confusing you. Do you really think you're going to pull your Leatherman out of your lycra shorts and disconnect the 12Kv wire?
It depends. I don't know the structure of the system, so I can't say. I've actually busted open the panel for a local internet routing box before and used the reset protocol to restore partial service to my area after a storm, so, it's not necessarily impossible depending on what needs to be done.
You're a moron.
I'd be pissed if some random fricker was digging through the neighborhood internet box
I looked up the documentation on my phone and followed the safety diagnostic protocol for a power test and reset. It's actually just color-by-numbers for a lot of stuff.
God damnit no you didn't Jason. Your story makes 0 sense. You were having a fever dream.
If the line falls near you and your car stop and looks like it's about to catch fire, you JUMP out of the car so the only thing on the ground is your feet and they need to be touching each other. Then you take the tiniest little waddle you possibly can keeping your feet together until you're like 50 ft away from the downed line and maybe increase your gait a tiny bit by bit until its normal. Reduce your gait if you start twitching.
The power company deals with it by looking at a map and knowing where to go shut it off.
>Reduce your gait if you start twitching.
My dad used to say that, and I never realized he was talking about downed power lines.
Done it before, kiddo. I even fashion a shovel out of an old log and buried the downed line, like it should have been in the first place, and still made it home in time for the concrete guys to show up to pour new slabs in my entire driveway. Learn how to be a man.
Call the owner of the transmission line. Chances are they already know.
There is no equipment to test the time. They have long insulated poles that linemen can disconnect the circuit at the pole and deenergize the line.
No one touches bare lines though unless it's grounded because of morons backfeeding their generators. They have big insulated gloves too
If you use an insulated pole to shove the live wire into a bunch of wet dirt or a substantial body of water, will it simply short out and kill itself up to the transformer/switch? How does that all work? What's the minimum volume of water required to create a short, and not just an electrified wet pool? What's the math on this?
You lack the knowledge to not have a nice day. Leave the wire alone and call the power company.
That doesn't answer the question. What is the actual equation in terms of volts/watts/amperage, water volume, and shorting capacity for a standard poletop transformer?
I've seen them arc in pavement and each the ground up to water boiling Temps and straight up lava. If they're arcing you'll know it because it will be the whitest light you've ever seen and cause eye damage.
Just stay away from wires all together.
Too much for you to deal with, which is why they are shut off remotely.
>What is the actual equation in terms of volts/watts/amperage, water volume, and shorting capacity for a standard poletop transformer?
I can't find the link but it's basically this: 9kv / OP's greasy ass = Vaporized OP..
>what is their general plan to render the lines safe?
It gets turned off at the substation, moron.
>What steps should I take?
Frickin big ones!