Bad Day At Work

[sparks]

Clobbered a 900 pair phone cable with a backhoe. What a mess. I feel like crap.

[MountainDon]

There's always a bright side to every darkside...
Every cloud has a silver lining...

Clobbered 900 pair phone cable with a backhoe

....Better than clobbering a High Voltage Underground Power Cable

[StinkerBell]

Sparks ( name seems so right)

Are you the person who caused that mess in Florida today?

[Redoverfarm]

Just be thankful it was not a fiber cable.  Never got the multitude of pairs that you scored. My guardrail crew did their fair share to smaller cables, and plenty of water lines.  We have a "Miss Utility" in this area which will come out and mark the locations of various utilities. Just one catch.  You can't get closer than 12" from their marks.  They are not sure either.  I had an employee who was better at "witching" lines with brass rods than their high tech sensors.  . Not really a problem unless with guardrail and the fed's regulate how close or far it can be installed from the road.  With an embankment there wasn't always a choice. What I always hated was gas lines. Not to mention the hazzard of an explosion but the equipment if running would be a total loss just from the gas vapor rapid excelleration.

[MountainDon]

Gas lines...

A couple years ago a crew breached a high pressure feeder line, something like 16 inch or maybe bigger. It was a couple miles from home I heard this noise and was wondering who was running a turbine engine that close to home. Then later I saw the news... No fire or explosion. I guess they were very lucky.

[Redoverfarm]

Never happened to us but the other crew actually did hit a gas line.  The escaping gas entered the equipment air intake and the engine went wide open until it blew up.  Even a stop switch from what I understand is useless. $100K down the drain. Luckily no injuries.

[glenn kangiser]

Don't feel like the Lone Ranger, Sparks.  I hit a 100 pair here about 6 months ago.  Fiber optic was a few more feet.  With all the solid rock here they had skewed over about 15 feet farther than their markers.  I was right beside a giant rock and thought they wouldn't go there.  Only good thing was I took out the Highay Patrol Hot Line.

When I worked for the phone company in '73 I hit a steel 6" gas main -- didn't rupture it but scratched it and got ylled ant and cost a lot to fix -- they made a  major production out of welding on a patch.

I'm sure there's more -- many more.

[peternap]

I've got a story that will make you feel better.

Back when I was still building, I had to trench a well line on a house that I was way behind schedule on.

I had already had the power company come out and mark the line and as it turned out, they were 6 feet off.

Anyway, Thanksgiving day I got the trenching crew out there. Should have been a quick day. The trencher hit the cable and lights for several miles went out.

I was afraid I would be lynched.

[ScottA]

Don't feel bad sparks I hit an 8" water main once. What a mess that was.

[Drew]

Not the worst work related accident, Sparks.  I went to Paris on business once.  My wife told me not to bring her back anything.

And I believed her.   

[MountainDon]

 

[ScottA]

Drew someone once said: Life is hard, but it's harder if you're stupid. 

[Drew]

That was John Wayne, Scott.  And I quoted him in the "Thought for Today" thread last week. 

Of all the lessons I've learned, that's one I've only had to learn once.   

[ScottA]

I was gonna say something stupid like "Doh!" but I won't do it, nope not gonna do it. No how no way.

[sparks]

Hi Folks, I feel somewhat better today. The reason for feeling like crap is knowing that I had cut off the only means some people have to communicate. Not everyone has an alternative cell phone. Wierd stuff ran thru my mind....what if someone needed to call the fire dept., etc. Anyway, here's the skinny on the damage: a completely severed 25 pair (you'll like this one Glenn......it was a dedicated line to a bank and the cop shop!), and approx 125 pairs out of the 900 line. The line was double flagged, but when I removed the snow to dig, a flag got snuffed. When I started the excavation, I was on the wrong side of the remaining flag. Gonna cost the company a pile of money and the state utility board can hit me for up to $1000 personally. Last cable I hit was 1987. 600 pair. The locate marks were off about 6 feet. And yeah, damn glad this wasn't fiber or high voltage. Btw this was in Wi. Had nothing to do with that Fl stuff!

[glenn kangiser]

At least you took out that cops.  That's gotta be worth something.

[fishing_guy]

Blame it on the weatherguy Sparks.  You got all our snow (Twin Cities MN) this year.  If you had bare ground to work with, no problem, right?

Hope the state board goes easy on you.

[sparks]

A couple of the guys I work with thought it might be an opportune time to knock off the bank.