The discovery of a cracked hydro pole on Green Street Sunday resulted in rerouted traffic and a couple of power interruptions as crews replaced the pole.
The crack was noticed by Manitoba Hydro workers, said a company spokesman.
“There were multiple crews working in the area that day, and a decision was made to replace the pole immediately for public safety and to avoid a potentially longer outage at a later date should the pole fail,” he said.
Crews are not able to work on live or energized equipment. Because of this, about 500 mostly residential customers were affected as power was shut off for the safety of the workers. Two power interruptions lasted approximately 15 minutes each, according to the spokesman.
“The reason for the crack is stress and age,” the spokesman told The Reminder.
He explained that wood poles are susceptible to damage caused by moisture and biological agents such as fungus rotting the pole structure, as well as damage from wildlife such as ants and woodpeckers, and from vehicular accidents or machinery contact.
“All of these factors can reduce the strength of a pole,” he said. “Weakened pole strength combined with environmental conditions such as heavy ice and/or wind loading often result in pole failures.”
Work on the Green Street pole, located near the Green Street apartments, concluded the same day it was discovered.
Manitoba Hydro inspects distribution lines on a yearly basis, said the spokesman. “Crews working in any given area of the province also routinely check poles and equipment.”
Many poles in the area are being upgraded, “which why staff are currently working in Flin Flon.”
Manitoba Hydro’s province-wide transmission and distribution system requires roughly one million wood poles. The average life expectancy of a pole is 75 years. “Each year, we inspect and treat more than 60,000 power distribution poles in order to extend their life,” the spokesman said.
A pole life-extension programs gives poles up to 15 years of added life, saving money and trees.
