THE DANGER OF CARELESSNESS

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 6, Issue 63, 9 April 1943, Page 4

THE DANGER OF CARELESSNESS

THE action of two Maori workmen allowing a tree to fall across the power main serving the Borough of Whakatane and thereby causing a complete stoppage in the supply for two hours has a far deeper and more serious aspectl than mere inconvenience to consumers. In' this instance the men were neither conversant, nor did they appreciate the danger of the proximity of the mains. The scarfing of the, trunk indicates this fact, for the barrel couVd not have fallen in any other direction than" it did, thus revealing a lack of information which even in Maoris is deplorable. The bringing down of this line carrying as it did fe load of 22,000 volts, could quite easily have resulted in serious loss of life, property and stock. Fortunately all were miraculously avoided. The point to be emphasised however, is not the lucky escape from injury or fire, but the irresponsibility of certain persons whose actions make such accidents possible. There is no excuse for this apathy and ignorance in these days and yet we understand that power authorities throughout the Dominion live in a state of perpetual dread that just such accidents, the result of utter thoughtlessness and foolishness are liable to occur * at any time. For the benefit of the Borough authority w<* have been requested to intimate that where a person desirous of felling trees within reach of standard power }ines, and where any danger is likely to take place from such action, they are advised to get in touch with the engineer who will be prepared to advise, or even supervise the felling in order to safeguard against accidents and interruptions to supply.