fiberguy
My views are my own.
Premium
join:2005-05-20
| reply to Austinloop
Re: It was her rotten utility pole - she owned it
While I agree with a lot of what you're saying with weight limitations and all... but ask yourself, before you get too far into yourself there... when was the last time you ever "tested a pole"... other than a quick visual.
What we have here, pretty simple in my observation, is a pole that needed to be replaced and a simple accident.
It's the EQUIPMENT that needs to be rated for safety and I know guys in the 300 lb range working safely.. POLES can most certainly handle 325 pounds... |
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Austinloop
join:2001-08-19
Austin, TX
| Not in the last 2 years, I am retired. I realize that some don't test poles, that is their decision, it was my decision, if I caught someone not testing a pole to take disciplinary action. I personally know of people who have died because of not taking an extra 5 minutes to make sure all is well before climbing. Again, the tools were provided, not using them is a deliberate act on their part.
I would disagree with your observation, that this is a simple accident, it was caused by not testing the pole. |
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fiberguy
My views are my own.
Premium
join:2005-05-20
2 edits | The ONLY thing that is required of pole testing is by using an FED for foreign current. Testing the quality or strength of a pole isn't done more than eying them. I mean, I can look at a pole and see that it's small, gaffed to hell, and chips away when I sneeze at it.
But, having worked for both Cable, and telephone. (PacBell, a major player) and having been in a few systems, and gone through over 15 years of training programs, pole testing has been the extend of how to climb it safely, and how to check for foreign voltage. And it's not "some" don't test.. it's MOST. (again, that's FV, ...that is outside of power guys.)
I guess we have to agree to disagree then. I'll leave it there becuase anything else will sound like an insult no matter how I try to say it. |
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idjk
@embarqhsd.net
| reply to Austinloop
Unless it looked real good I always at least gave the pole a good smack with my line hammer to catch the tone of the wood, also always look at ground wire. I was telco and often there was no power above but you never know about down the line--I really like to hook but that was long ago. |
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Austinloop
join:2001-08-19
Austin, TX
1 edit | reply to fiberguy
Well, whatever, however pole prods and sounding poles were trained and expected in SWB. I really have no idea what PacBell did, nor do I really care.
I was an outside foreman for around 24 years. |
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fiberguy
My views are my own.
Premium
join:2005-05-20
| said by Austinloop  :I was an outside foreman for around 24 years. Well, that explains much of your post. I guess this is turning into a pissing contest. I think when you pass a certain point with time in. 15 years or 24 years doesn't really matter. But, if this does help, I was generally mostly in supervisory position. (We stopped calling them foreman positions a long time ago and called them leads and supervisors in all the shops I ever worked in)
So, in the systems I worked in, being PacBell, Comcast, Scripts Howard, AT&T, and Time Warner, none of them trained on pole testing.. I guess it's based on the system you work.
Either way.. the pole broke and a news story was posted here on a forum.. slow news day I guess. |
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its me again
@comcast.net
| reply to fiberguy
said by fiberguy :While I agree with a lot of what you're saying with weight limitations and all... but ask yourself, before you get too far into yourself there... when was the last time you ever "tested a pole"... other than a quick visual. What we have here, pretty simple in my observation, is a pole that needed to be replaced and a simple accident. It's the EQUIPMENT that needs to be rated for safety and I know guys in the 300 lb range working safely.. POLES can most certainly handle 325 pounds... yeah, but would it want to? |
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