Calls for care after powerline incidents

A tip truck driver was taken to hospital after hitting a high voltage conductor at Trafalgar South recently.

The incident was one of three that sparked concern about heavy machinery operating under powerlines.

Energy Safe Victoria commission chairperson Marnie Williams is pleading with machinery operators to take more care under and around powerlines after three serious incidents in regional Victoria last month.

On Friday April 30, a tip truck hit a high voltage conductor at Trafalgar South. The driver was taken to hospital in a stable condition.

On April 27, a man was left in critical condition after the grain auger he was transporting hit powerlines at a property in Harston, southwest of Shepparton.

According to reports, the man was severely shocked after the grain auger – being towed by the forklift he was standing on – hit one of the bare overhead powerlines above. The man was airlifted to the Alfred hospital, a second person driving the forklift also received an electric shock but did not require treatment.

The third incident on April 12 occurred when a crane truck offloading building material connected with powerlines in Dromana. The incident involved the crane arm making contact with overhead 22kV lines above. Two men were injured, one is in a serious condition.

All incidents resulted in people taken to hospital and are being investigated by ESV and WorkSafe.

“To have three in the space of 18 days is deeply concerning,” Ms Williams said.

“Anyone operating machinery such as cranes, crane trucks and tipper trucks must look up because incidents like these are preventable if operators of machinery take the proper precautions. They need to be aware of power lines, particularly in rural and regional areas where single bare powerlines are often hard to see.

“You only need to see the consequences from these three incidents, which have all caused serious injuries and in some other cases people have died,” she said.

The Look Up and Live campaign has been running for almost 10 years. It calls on workers and operators of such machinery to be aware of powerlines and plan how to safely undertake their work before they begin.

ESV reminded people that powerlines are more difficult to see at dawn and dusk; electricity can jump across air gaps; and, powerlines can sag in extreme heat and sway in strong winds.