The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1906-04-07
DANGERs OF ELECTRICITY.
Damage ny High Power Wires in Causing
Fires and EXplOsIona.

To THE EDITOR OF The SUH-Sir: tn.
refusal OF COMMISSIONS Ellison to permit
the erection In this city OF overhead lion
volt wires for the New York Central system
brings up the great danger attending such
power wires. A case of their destructivenes,
will be cited. An overhead 5000 volt wire
broke in Joliet, H.. and fell across soma
Western Union Telegraph wires. Fires wrs
simultaneously started in railroad stations
at Joliet, Romeo and Spencer. Those at ths
last two places, twenty-five miles apart, vera
burned to the ground, The telegraph an.
paratus attached to the wires In Joliet and
within a radius Of twenty miles was de-.
stroyed.
Lightning discharges are strongly attracted
to high power wires supported by mas.
sive steel poles or bridges. and owing to thu
high resistance insulators employed, a force
10 exerted by the atmospheric electricity
capable OF hurting down or breaking such
wires. 1t has been a common occurrence for
lightning discharges to shatter glass insula.
tors and wooden poles supporting telegraph
and other wires, and also TO break down such
wires within a distance Of 1000 feet.
1t Is therefore obvious that wherever
high power wires are employed overhead In
cities. towns and populated sections It =
absolutely necessary to employ a parallel
lightning attractor system, for which light.
at'b NipNAti oNS - - a''NNh II
ton than for such overhead wires.
The recent ignition of a gas tank in Hobo.
ken also brings up some Of the dangerous
electric engineering practices employed in
many cities, which consist in the metallic
connection of the negative pole of a power
station with the track rails of trolley railways
In the vicinity of a gas works and also In such
connection Of such pole with adjacent water
and gas pipes. Under the latter practice as
Iinh M 1 zoo n Tnnarnu Of nlanfria ,,rx.n.
sometimes manifested upon such bonded
metal pipes, and owing TO the great collective
or suction action of such power station an
rusted. painted, electrically pitted or sepa.
rated metal pipes or plates located within a
radius of 9, 500 feet of the power station or OF
the track connection point.
In Hoboken the negative pole Of the electric
power station ,is connected with the track
and adjacent to such track connection point
twelve and sixteen inch water mains were
electrically DESTROYED, a few years ago. The
about the gas works are quite favorable,
A very dangerous thing IN connection with
a gas works was ATTEMPTED IN Brooklyn some
years ago. A copper plate laid In the East
River was connected by a wire with the piping
system of the Nassau gas works. adjacent
to the Kent avenue power station, and while
was created between the wire and pipe. In
this case the electric power. generators OF
the ttie' water BY the plate and gas works rI h5Hng
system to their negative pole. Fortunately
plate shortly after it was placed, otherwise
long ere this electric pitting and ignition
would ha We been caused about the gas works
Electric arcs are manifested, in connection
with the underground metal pipes AZ n point
TO Kill van Kull about half n mia
from the nearest electric railway. They az"
caused by the current from the positive nole
OF the power station at Jersey City. which
after traversing the car motors. leaves the
track rails IN Bayonne for the adjacent water
and other intersecting metal pipes.
The extent of underground electric de-
In this country, Ia much greater
than Is generally suspected and is just com.
In a recent Issue Of the Railroad Gdset,
George Westinghouse calls attention TO the
destruction OF natural gas wells,
E1 fho clearly nanrsnt INDICATES zig tSs t hstb the des aleTNtSd
railways Of certain underground vertical
metal pipes employed about the skyscrapers
In Manhattan is inevitable unless soon pre-
In addition to a great, number OF service
and gas pipes adjacent to the track
rails destroyed I'm Brooklyn by. electric ran.
way currents during the past twelve years,
elght inch water mains destroyed at points
near the East River. Wallabout Canal and
other waterways, and from 100 TO $500 feet
WItRIm = fr dIsf,n the 5 5es apott ]e soS qast T f@dm X.
in water pipes due TO electric %plttlng.
For some years, past tie electric. railway
clearly, indicated that the only remedy for
electrolysis consists in providing the trolley
and elevated railway circuits with ground
3onnectiops Of high efficiency. independentt
his is done underground electr ic destruction
n Greater New York and els ewhere will con.
.inue. ii. w. SPANG.
NEW YORK. April Q.