Watch Out for Overhead Lines!

[Chief Engineer]

Explosion Injures Man After Sailboat Mast Hits Power Lines - Baltimore News, Weather, Breaking News | WMAR-TV

I was about a mile away from this when it happened

[senormechanico]

Not just boats either.

YouTube - wong edan kesetrum,modyar deh....

[Ex-Calif]

Quote - "There are no apparent signs and the nautical charts carry no warnings that at high tide, a boat’s mast could reach the lowest-lying power lines in the middle of the channel."

I smell lawsuit...

[btrayfors]

The chart shows a powerline with an authorized clearance of 42' in one of the channels up Bullneck Creek. So, it's marked OK, but I must say that it's not very prominently marked on the chart.

Wonder what the sailor was using for navigation?

Horrendous occurence!

Bill

[osirissail]

- - Look at the definitions in Chart 1 and you will see that overhead obstructions are charted at high water while underwater obstructions are charted at Low water. And the charted height is only measured where it crosses a channel, not elsewhere along the cables, etc. - same for bridges.
- - That said, it does not mean that over the years there may be additional "droop" in the cables making the chart's shown height obsolete. These items are not updated.
- - There are high tension lines in the Cocoa, Fl village anchorage dividing the north anchorage from the south. Some boats have dragged anchor into the power lines with spectacular fireworks show results. I never anchor "upwind" of power lines.

[speciald@ocens.]

A friend of mine hit a power line around Hilton Head one August. His mast height was less than the chartered height of the line. The VHF antenna was obliterated but the carbon fiber mast was unharmed. Turns out the line had sagged below the chartered height secondary to the Summer height. The power company paid for repairs and mast survey after threat of law suit.

Years ago, a couple of guys were killed when their mast tangled with a power line and they jumped into the water to escpae.