Arizona republican., 1912-01-07
Erection of Transmission
and Telephone Wires
from South Canal
Plant to Mesa.
WARNING GIVEN
TO SPORTSMEN
Careless Shooters Nav
Cause the Electrocution
of Innocent Persons
and Cause Damage.

| l. G. Harris. the electrical engineer
| i'm charge of the government transmits
sion line from Roosevelt has begun
the construction of the transmission
line from the power plant on the
| South canal to the switching station
at Mesa CITY This work is being
done by the Water Users associa-
| ton direct and not by the govern
| ment. though the association pays the
| government for doing it as it has all
the equipment necessary and the only
| charge is for the work of the men.
The line is eight miles long and
| the hardest part Of the work is the
| erection of the towers which must
| carry three transmission power lines
and telephone line. These towers
are 80 30 and 40 feet high and are
10 he planted in concrete. No con-
| tractor could afford To take the job
| for the price the government can do
| it with its equipment all ready for
\ use.
In connection with this story it is
very timely to repeat warning given
before and if possible impress it more
|
of disaster that may follow thought
/ less shooting at birds which may he
| sitting on any of the electric wires
| i'm this valley. whether telephone
| telegraph or power lines. Probably
/ few who yield To the temptation of
such inviting marks appreciate the
possible result of their aim. II is
| just as likely that the marksman may
cut the wire as To hit the bird If
| il De telephone wire il is to say
the least q nuisance To the user of
| the telephone. Ii il be a power wire
it may he severed or injured So il
| breaks the sooner. II it be tele-
phone cable it may put hundred
telephones out of commission. If it
he telegraph wire ii is to say the
| least most reprehensible vandalism.
But all the cost To the government.
the telephone companies and the tele-
graph companies and all the incOn-
venicnce 10 patrons of these utilities
are nothing compared with the pos
sible danger to life. With the multi
plicity of wires that now form a net
work over the valley and in the near
future will become much more num-
erous. one is in danger every time he
cuts a wire of dropping loose end
over another wire. If telephone wire
| be dropped across a power wire. or
vice versa the telephone wire is very
apt to become charged with a voltage
deadly To- whoever comes i'm contact
with it. Only wear or 50 ago
man was killed in Mesa City by a
telephone wire being charged from
the power line when the branch Of a
tree brought them together. There
have been numerous narrow escapes
of a similar nature
Sometimes when the wires are not
actually in contact the loose end may
come close enough for the telephone
wire to become charged by Undue
ton
Not long ago at point mile
south of Tempe some one fired a bull
let into the transmission wire cutting
two Of the six strands and the other
four strands pulled apart. The marks
OF the leaden missile were plainly seen
on the ends of the severed wires. The
wire sputtered on the ground and
though ii did not come i'm contact
with the telephone wire sufficient cur
rent was absorbed by induction to in
terfere disastrously with the telephone
system. Engineer Harris says that
is the fourth incident of the sort that
he knows about and there may have
been many others. Here in Phoenix
a telephone cable was shot into. not
long ago and the bullet was found in
the cable Scores Of phones were put
out of commission even though the
cable was not severed.
The danger is not merely in the
pOpulous districts where shooting is
not allowed anyway but far out i'm the
country all sorts of damage may be
done Anywhere along the Roosevelt
line d single shot may cross wires or
put the line out of service temporarily
and power lines as well as telephone
lines are now found in many parts of
the valley. a single bit of foolish
ness on the part of a careless shot.
might easily kill a half dozen persons
before the trouble could be guarded
against And to sum it all up, the
penalty Of the law for disturbing or
shooting into wire may be $500 fine
and five years in the pen.
-O-