Seattle City Light's inspections of metal streetlight poles have found three more instances of contact voltage. Last week Seattle Superintendent Jorge Carrasco briefed the media and the public on City Light’s plan to inspect 20,000 metal streetlight poles and 10,000 metal “hand holes” (small metal streetlight vault covers). This update is intended to provide a progress report since that briefing.
“So far, we have inspected 270 metal streetlight poles at High Point and GreenBridge developments and have found no additional contact voltage situations at these locations,” says Carrasco. “We will move on to Holly Park and Rainier Vista tomorrow. In addition, we have identified three other individual metal streetlight locations where there was voltage present. These include 13th and East Aloha East, where there was 60 – 80 volts. We found very deteriorated wire. The original cables were installed in the 1920s. Another location was at Boren and Marion, where there was 90 – 105 volts present. This pole is 30 – 40 years old. And, the final location was at 23rd and East Union with 60 – 80 volts from a metal pole that is 30 – 40 years old. There was no indication of the cause of voltage release at the last two metal streetlight poles. We have de-energized the lights until repairs can be made.”
City Light will continue its own inspection efforts and is evaluating options to expedite the original end date for inspection completion in May. City Light will routinely up-date the public on the progress being made with inspections.