Safety
Alert
For Anglian Water employees and contractors
Alert No. SA000496 24th Jan 2014
Working near overhead power
lines: Correct demarcation and
maintenance of crossing points
Author: Paul Turpin
Issued in Anglian Water by: Dave
Matthews
Note: HSE photo used
What happened?
Contractors laying water mains demarked a passageway (crossing point) for vehicles
plant to pass under an overhead power line. Barriers directing vehicles and plant to
passageway did not extend fully to the edges of the working strip and changes to the
set-up made it difficult to use the passageway. An excavator passed beneath the power
without using the passageway and struck the overhead power cables.
and
the
site
line
How do we stop this happening again?
• IF CHANGES TO THE SITE SET-UP ARE MADE, THE SAFE SYSTEM OF WORK MUST
BE REVIEWED BY A COMPETENT PERSON
• On all similar works, barriers should extend the full width of the working strip in order to
prevent vehicles and plant missing the passageway(s)
• Keep the number of passageways to a minimum
• Define the route of the passageway using fences and erect goalposts at each end to act
as gateways using a rigid, non-conducting material, eg timber or plastic pipe, for the
goalposts, highlighted with, for example, red and white stripes
• Put warning notices at either side of the passageway, on or near the goalposts and on
approaches to the crossing giving the crossbar clearance height and instructing drivers to
lower jibs, booms, tipper bodies etc and to keep below this height while crossing
• Ensure all site personnel are made aware of the requirements
• You may need to illuminate the notices and crossbar at night, or in poor weather
conditions, to make sure they are visible
• Make sure that the barriers and goalposts are maintained
• All work near to overhead power lines should fully comply with HSE Publication:
Avoiding danger from overhead power lines Guidance Note GS6 (Fourth edition)
Safety Alerts should not be thought of as accident investigation reports. However, they are issued to raise awareness of
accidents that occur and to highlight the safe working practices required to avoid them being repeated.