Ergon goes safety first on dog attacks
DOZENS of electricity company workers are being mauled by vicious dogs each year, including a crew member who was grabbed and dragged by her head.
Ergon Energy yesterday revealed 71 workers, mostly meter readers, had been injured by dog bites statewide between July 2017 and October last year.
There were a further 199 close calls with snappy dogs.
Townsville topped the list with 39 incidents in that time, followed by the Fraser-burnett region with 30. There were nine incidents in Charters Towers.
Ergon Energy Herbert area manager Wayne Alderman said four people had to be hospitalised.
“We do have incidents where we’ve had a meter reader grasped by a dog on the back of her head, a young meter reader, and she was actually dragged,” he said.
“She was hospitalised and had some very serious injuries around her head and her ear
“We’ve had people in the southeast part of the state that have had to go in for surgery to their hands because their tendons have been damaged.”
Pictures released by Ergon Energy show workers with bruising on their legs, mid sections, and arms, including open wounds.
The increase in the number of Ergon Energy meter readers being attacked by dogs has pushed the company to launch a safety campaign.
From January 14 staff won’t enter a yard if a dog is not restrained.
“The safety of our employees has to come first and that means if there is a dog on a property that isn’t restrained, we won’t go in to do work of any kind,” Mr Alderman said.
“We’ll talk to customers about what options are available and if no one is home, we will leave information to help them do a self-read.
“In some cases where there is a dangerous dog or known access issue, a remote read meter will be installed.”