PR 25 08
BONNEVILLE POWER ADMINISTRATION
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
FRIDAY, APRIL 25, 2008
CONTACT: Doug Johnson (503) 230-5840
Insulators damaged by firearms in St. Helens area
St. Helens, Ore. - The Bonneville Power Administration is investigating and offering a reward for information in connection with an incident that occurred near St. Helens, Ore. Last week, BPA officials discovered insulators damaged by firearms along a 115-kilovolt power line near St. Helens. BPA estimates that $9,600 worth of damage was done to the equipment.
Insulators are a critical part of the high-voltage transmission system because they ensure that electricity stays in the power lines and does not enter steel lattice towers or poles along which the insulators are strung.
"These insulators keep our linemen and anyone in the general area of these towers safe," said Kim Howell, BPA district manager. "When insulators are damaged, it creates an extreme and immediate danger. Anyone near the transmission towers is at risk of a strong electric shock, at the very least, and possibly even serious injury or death."
Because of this potential danger, Howell said it's important that hunters and others using firearms around high-voltage power lines remember to use caution when shooting.
"We're hoping that this information will help jog someone's memory who may know about this or may have seen someone shooting at power lines in the area," said Kevin West, BPA physical security specialist. "Sometimes even small details can help law enforcement officials make significant investigative progress."
Information leading to the arrest and conviction of someone who purposefully shot the insulators could lead to a reward. Under its Crime Witness program, BPA provides rewards up to $25,000. Anyone who has information about this incident should call BPA's Crime Witness hotline at
(800) 437-2744.
Since 2006, BPA has paid eight rewards totaling almost $6,500 for information provided that led to arrests or convictions of individuals who stole or defaced BPA property.
BPA is a not-for-profit federal electric utility that markets more than a third of the electricity consumed in the Pacific Northwest. The power is produced at 31 federal dams and one nuclear plant in the Northwest and is sold to more than 140 Northwest utilities. BPA operates a high-voltage transmission grid comprising more than 15,000 miles of lines and associated substations in Washington, Oregon, Idaho and Montana.
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