Inspection Detail

Inspection: 1471975.015 - Georgia Power Company

Inspection Information - Office: Atlanta West Area Office

Investigation Summary

At 11:25 a.m. on March 30, 2020, an employee working as an electrician for a power company was part of a construction crew along with eleven coworkers. The crew was assigned to a 500-kilovolt substation bus rebuild project. The work for the day was to dig and set foundations for the new breakers and replace the substation bus support insulators. Substation bus support insulator replacement involves setting up two cranes, one for lowering (removing) and lifting (installing) the insulators, and the second to hold the bus work itself at the attachment points. The attachment points were to be cut out, physically cutting the bus on either side of the insulator support and reworked for the new insulators. Coworkers were assigned to spotter duty after a job safety briefing was held at the beginning of the workday. The employee was tasked with removing and replacing the bus support insulators while standing on a manlift. The crane holding the bus work was set to be stationary. A coworker was operating the crane for lowering and lifting the insulators. After the employee cut the substation bus on either side of the bus support insulator, he was in the process of rigging a strap between the insulator and the crane lifting hook. An arc occurred between the crane boom and the 500-kilovolt conductor overhead resulting in a flash at the employee's location. The employee sustained second degree burns to his chest and arms and was hospitalized.

Keywords: Arm, Burn, Busbar, Chest, Construction, Construction vehicle, Crane, Crane Boom, Crane Operator, Electric Arc, Electric Arc Flash, Electric Conductor, Electric Shock, Electric current, Electrical, Electrical Burn, Electrical Work, Electrician, High Voltage, Installing, Insufficient Supervision, Insulator, Misjudgment, Misjudgment of Hazardous Situation, Rigging