By Bill Wolcott/wolcottb@gnnewspaper.com
Lockport Union-Sun & Journal
March 19, 2008 04:03 am
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A Donner Road man has complained that he and his neighbors lose power in their homes “every time there is a storm” and that he has seen arcing from the wires.
A National Grid representative in Niagara Falls acknowledged that that it has received two calls from the customer since January but there have been no reports of arcing.
“I’ve been living here 20 years, and it’s getting worse,” said Dean Biedle, who guesses that the wires are at least 70 years old. “Everything is ancient. It’s been a nightmare since we moved here. Any kind of a storm and we just know the power is going to go out — any storm out of the ordinary.”
Biedle said he has complained to everybody he could possibly go to and was advised to get a petition signed by his neighbors. He said he saw the arcing in September.
“I was looking out the bathroom window and there was an arc in the sky, and the power went,” he said. An arcing is a luminous discharge of electric current across the gap between two electrodes.
National Grid does not have an arcing report on record, a Niagara Falls representative said Tuesday. “If you see arcing, it’s an emergency,” she said. “It’s a safety issue. There is nothing in the account about this. Arcing lines are a huge safety concern. We want to know where and how long.”
If there is an emergency, call 1-800 NIAGARA.
Biedle has a gasoline generator ready. It is connected to the furnace and the sump pump, with an extension cord to the kitchen.
While it’s not standard procedure, National Grid will contact Biedle, a representative said.
Contact reporter Bill Wolcott at 439-9222, ext. 6246.
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