OVERHANGING TREES

Hawke's Bay Tribune, Volume XXVI, Issue 111, 23 April 1936, Page 9

OVERHANGING TREES

Further Trouble Caused To Power Lines SERIOUS MATTER following directly after the statement to the Hawke’s Bay Electric Power Board by its engineer, Mr H. L. Benjamin, that overhanging trees were a continual source of danger and annoyance where power lines are concerned, a heavy wind yesterday in the board’s district brought positive, if unwelcome, proof of the statement. Over almost the whole of the area under the jurisdiction of the board, trees overhanging power lines caused stoppages of power in many country districts.

The Electric Power Board has continually impressed upon the public that trees which constitute a potential danger to the lines must be cut down, if an efficient supply is to be maintained. For confirmation of this, one need only imagine the plight of a dairy farmer with upwards of a hundred cows, who relies upon electric power to provide power for his milking machines. Speaking of tl e trouble caused yesterday, the engineer of the board, Mr H. L. Benjamin said last night: “Heavy winds yesterday caused considerable trouble to the board’s lines, over the whole district. In the morning, a poplar tree at Pukahu blew across the wires, and later, branches fell across the lines on Havelock, Longlands, and Kaiapo roads, and also at Eskdale. During the first part if the afternoon, one of the main feeders tripped out no less than six times, ow-

ing to branches of trees along country roads hitting the wires. “At 2.30 p m. the wind dropped considerably, and no further trouble was experienced. The board staff was kept busy the whole day locating the cause of this trouble, and it has been found necessary to cut down the trees that are considered dangerous. “The trouble caused by those trees was felt over the whole of the board’s area, including the borough of Hastings. In addition to the heavy cost to the board of this maintenance work, a large number of consumers have been inconvenienced, especially those who depend on electric power for cooking, and the unfortunate dairy farmers with their milking plants.”