Trimming trees this summer? Do it safely. Here’s how…
When temps start to climb, so do the number of items on our to-do lists – especially those waiting for us in the great outdoors. From pulling weeds to planting flowers, there’s plenty of work to do to keep our properties looking great throughout the summer and early...
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What’s that wire? The service drop: your home’s high-voltage connection to the energy grid.
If you live or work in a neighborhood that receives electric service from overhead power lines that run between utility poles, you tap into the energy grid through a line called a “service drop.” A service drop spans from a nearby utility pole to your home or...
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Trapped: what to do if a power line falls on your car
Did you know more than 6 million car accidents – and 3 million subsequent injuries – occur in the U.S. each year? Getting behind the wheel is the most dangerous thing most of us do each day, and that’s before high-voltage electric equipment is added to the equation....
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Downed power lines: Knowing what to do can save your life
Electricity powers our lives in so many ways. So much so, that most of us wouldn’t know how to get by without it. But when power lines come down in instances of severe weather, for example, that same electricity that energizes our days can quickly become a matter of...
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Stay alert, stay alive: Five tips to keep your family safe during severe weather season
Warmer weather in Michigan activates the beautiful landscape that spans the Great Lakes State. From tulips in Holland to bright-red cherries in Grand Traverse County and sweet corn in Almont, the spring and summer months breathe new life into our communities. But it’s...
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How do squirrels safely walk on power lines? It’s National Squirrel Appreciation Day; let’s find out!
Whether you live on a Fairgrove Township farm or in a downtown Detroit duplex, odds are you encounter squirrels on a regular basis. These members of the family Sciuridae – a tribe of small- and medium-size rodents that includes chipmunks and prairie dogs – are...
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Pianos on power lines: how winter weather can endanger your family and damage the energy grid
There’s no doubt a fresh, glistening coat of new-fallen snow lining the streets, and ice-coated tree limbs, branches and rooflines can create seasonal warm and fuzzies, and deliver a heavy dose of winter nostalgia straight to our hearts. Michigan’s natural winter...
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Grandma knows best: how educating family members saved a life
Traffic delays are nothing new for metro Detroiters. After all, many of us joke we only have two seasons in the Midwest – winter and construction – and natives of southeastern Michigan have become well-versed in navigating orange barrels, potholes and speed traps...
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Between the Poles: What are those wires?
Ok, so you’ve probably noticed there are quite a few wires on a utility pole, and that not all of them provide electricity. But what are the rest of them for, and what’s that barrel that looks like an oil drum hanging near them? Let’s start from the top. Utility poles...
read moreFrom Lehigh Valley News: PPL demonstrates what NOT to do around live power lines
You don’t ever want to make contact with a power line.
If there’s one lesson to take away from PPL’s safety demonstration Thursday afternoon in Allentown, that’s the big one. And it applies not just to physical contact, but to digging, too.
To read the full article, visit: WATCH: PPL demonstrates what NOT to do around live power lines