Clear and present danger

Received:from austinbridge.amfm.com (mail.amfm.com ) 
Subject: FW: ENG and remote mast safety
Date: Fri, 2 Jun 2000 14:40:50 -0500
 
> ----------
> From:         Cox, Tom
> Sent:         Thursday, June 01, 2000 3:56 PM
> To:    GulfPac Engineers
> Subject:      ENG and remote mast safety
> 
> We recently had a tragic accident here in southern CA that occured when a
> TV ENG truck pneumatic mast contacted power lines.  Many of you have this
> type of mast in remote and promotions vehicles.  What are we doing to keep
> such accidents from happening in our markets?  Below is a copy of a local
> e mail newsletter that details the accident.  Food for thought...
> 
> __________________________________________________________________
> 
> ------------------------------------------------------------------
> 
>                       THE CGC COMMUNICATOR 
>                             
>                             CGC #393
>  
>                      Thursday,  June 1, 2000 
>                            
>                  Robert F. Gonsett, W6VR, Editor
>                               
>      Copyright 2000, Communications General Corporation (CGC)  
> 
> ------------------------------------------------------------------
> __________________________________________________________________
> 
> 
>   SPECIAL EDITION COVERING THE ADRIENNE ALPERT ACCIDENT
> 
>   CGC #392 carried the following story:
> 
>      "Veteran KABC-TV news reporter Adrienne Alpert was 
>      seriously burned last Monday when the mast on her ENG 
>      van contacted high voltage overhead power lines. 
>  
>      "Do you have specific information on this accident 
>      that would help others avoid disaster?  What practical 
>      safety measures could be built into ENG gear?  Have you 
>      seen other accidents or "near misses," and what lessons 
>      were learned?  What safety videos does your station use?
>  
>      "Our prayers are with Adrienne."
> 
>   In response to this story, the following comments were
>   received.  Our "nine line limit" for Letters to the Editor
>   was temporarily waived due to the importance of the subject.
> 
> ******************************************************************
> 
>   WAS THE ALPERT VAN PARKED ON SLOPED TERRAIN?
> 
>   Three CGC Communicator readers observed that the Alpert 
> ENG mast was leaning toward overhead power lines.  Some 
> individuals reported that the van was parked on sloped terrain.  
> Perhaps the mast itself was not square to the van, or wind may 
> have contributed to the lean; we simply do not know.  A small 
> picture of the leaning mast is available at:
> 
> http://www.channel2000.com/news/stories/news-20000522-170224.html
> 
>   Obviously, the person deploying the mast may have seen a 
> clear (but tenuous) opening directly overhead, while in fact
> the mast deployed at an angle - right into one of the lines.
> 
> ******************************************************************
> 
>   ENG SAFETY NEWSLETTERS, VIDEOS AND OTHER MATERIAL
> 
>   Only one CGC Communicator reader offered a citation for 
> ENG safety training material.  Our thanks to Larry Bloomfield 
> for the following URL:
> 
>   http://www.engsafety.com/
> 
> ******************************************************************
> 
>   STILL MISSING:  CRITICAL DETAILS OF THE ACCIDENT
> 
>   Fearing lawsuits and not wanting to spawn misinformation, 
> many insiders have been reluctant to discuss the specifics of 
> the Alpert accident.  Was Adrienne "blown out of the van" as 
> some press accounts had it, or did she deliberately bail out 
> because of smoke and/or fear of an explosion?  Was there in fact 
> an explosion as some press accounts reported, or simply arcing?  
> 
>   While the press was focused on the ENG antenna contacting a 
> 34,000 volt line, we engineers knew that two points of contact 
> would be necessary to complete a circuit.  Exactly what did 
> Adrienne (and the two other injured individuals) touch to 
> draw electrical current?  It is tempting to say that Adrienne 
> stepped out of an electrified van thereby completing a circuit 
> to ground, but the details may be more complex.  
> 
>   One engineer wrote:
> 
>   "I have now heard from two sources about some kind of arc 
> from the door to the building wall, presumably an arc through 
> to the stucco mesh.  I saw a lot of pooling of water around the 
> van from a drainage pipe, perhaps from an air conditioner on 
> the roof.  There was a pretty large char mark where the pipe 
> exited the building.  There seems to have been a complex set of 
> paths involving the door, the mesh, the drain pipe, Adrienne's 
> body, and the drain water.  No one has said that video cable 
> was let out at that time."
> 
>   The bottom line is that there are a few hints as to the 
> mechanics of the accident, but we need to wait for authoritative 
> reports.  Once the true facts are known, accident prevention 
> programs can be fine tuned.
> 
> ******************************************************************
> 
>   ROOF WINDOWS
> 
>   Two CGC Communicator readers asked if ENG vans have windows 
> in their roofs above the mast operating position so the operator
> can see overhead.  While some vans have the mast deployment
> controls inside, others require the operator to stand outside.  
> A southern California TV broadcast engineer familiar with van 
> construction explains:
> 
>   "(Our) homemade vans of seven years ago and before had 
> controls inside the working area at the top of the rack, so 
> that an operator could engage the mast without ever getting out 
> of the van to look for obstructions.  No roof window, not even a 
> flood light mounted at the bottom.  The newer vans, from ENG Corp.
> of San Leandro, have the controls inside the rear door and a 
> floodlight shining up which can't be extinguished.  An operator 
> must get out of the van, open the door, reach inside, and engage 
> the air valve upward."
> 
> ******************************************************************
> 
>   USE A MAST-MOUNTED VOLTAGE SENSOR FOR PERSONNEL PROTECTION
> 
>   Will-Burt Co. (a major manufacturer of telescoping masts for 
> ENG and remote broadcast applications), has for years offered a 
> special sensor that can be ordered as an accessory for a new mast,
> or retro-fitted to existing masts.  There are three different 
> types of sensor feedback systems in this package, one of them 
> being an E-field sensor, that sends a signal in the presence of 
> a high voltage conductor.  I've been reading about this product 
> for several years now.  I understand that if any or all of the 
> separate sensor elements are activated, the air pump to the mast
> is disabled and the mast will not telescope any higher.  I 
> suggest you contact Will-Burt Co. for more details 
> .  They also advertise in Radio World 
> on a regular basis.
> 
>   I personally think the person(s) responsible for raising 
> the mast on that KABC-TV ENG truck should have made certain that 
> the antenna would be in the clear.  I myself have done hundreds 
> of live remotes for KLSX/KRLA from 1994 to 1999, and a number of 
> times I know that the mobile studio (with a Will-Burt 35 foot 
> telescoping mast) was parked in a "compromised" position, where 
> being under high voltage power lines was unavoidable (considering
> the time left to set up on location and make the air schedule on 
> time).  In those few instances, I always made sure that I never 
> raised the RPU antenna mast anywhere close to the power lines 
> overhead.  RPU signal strength may have suffered a bit, but 
> nobody got burned!
> 
>   I feel it is incumbent on station managers and CEs to make 
> certain that anyone who operates an ENG van, truck, or mobile 
> studio makes certain, in writing, that all their staff have been 
> fully trained, educated, and understand fully the dangers involved
> where overhead power lines, etc. are an unavoidable part of the 
> broadcaster's job.
> 
>   My deepest sympathy to Adrienne and her family.
> 
>   Bill Wysock, N6UXW, wysock@ttr.com  
> 
> ******************************************************************
> 
>   ENG MASTS - MY SOLUTION
> 
>   The last couple of vans I have built for radio field work 
> with pneumatic masts, I set up like this:
> 
>   First of all, I use a marine grade 'ignition' type key switch 
> for control (available from www.westmarine.com).  Buy the three 
> position key switch with OFF / ON / START contacts.  I wire the 
> switch so that in the OFF position, the 12 volts to the air hold 
> relay is switched off, therefore the mast comes down.  In the ON 
> position, the air hold relay is energized and the mast will hold 
> pressure.  In the START position, it runs the compressor and the 
> mast goes up.
> 
>   Now, here's how it saves lives:
> 
>   Locate the key for the mast switch on the same key ring as the 
> van ignition key and door keys.  Make sure to tack the key ring shut
> so the keys cannot be removed by field personnel.  This makes them 
> HAVE to get out of the van to work the mast, and also ensures that 
> they don't drive with the mast up, since they have to remove the 
> key from the mast control switch to use the ignition key, and to 
> remove the key from the mast switch, it must be in the OFF position,
> therefore lowering the mast.
> 
>   Locate the control switch behind the spring loaded license 
> plate (you may have to install the spring loaded hinge yourself 
> on some vans).  This hides it nicely, but still mandates that mast
> control is done from the outside of the van in plain view of the 
> overhead situation.
> 
>   Using smaller wires added to the van's factory bundle is 
> simple and clean looking.  The mast key switch actuates relays 
> in the equipment rack that handle the higher current required 
> for the air pressure switch and the compressor.
> 
>   Paul Shinn, paul@kstn.net
> 
> ******************************************************************
> 
>   INCIDENTS IN THE VICINITY OF PALM SPRINGS
> 
>   (A local) TV station had two incidents involving ENG vans.  
> I am not sure what happened the first time, but an engineer was 
> working on the truck and a photographer took off in the truck 
> as two engineers chased him a block and caught him just in time.
> 
>   The second incident involved driving at 30+ miles per hour 
> with the mast extended through a set of 30 KV lines by Salton 
> City.  Then the truck died and fires started around the truck.
> They now have a mast/transmission interlock.
> 
>   Dennis Doty
> 
> ******************************************************************
> 
>   RIGHT AWAY ANOTHER TRAGEDY, THIS TIME WITH 115 KV
> 
>   A KGAN-TV (Cedar Rapids, Iowa) photographer was shocked 
> and burned on Saturday, May 27, as he was raising the mast on 
> a microwave news van.  The mast came in contact with an overhead 
> power line that was carrying 115,000 volts of electricity.  As 
> of Sunday evening, 30-year-old Peter MacNaughton was in critical 
> but stable condition in the burn unit at University Hospitals 
> in Iowa City.  MacNaughton was preparing for a live news report 
> at Squaw Creek Park in Marion when the accident happened. 
> (Via: Shoptalk Magazine)
> 
>   Frederick R. Vobbe, w8hdu@wlio.com
> 
>   Editor's Note:  An update on MacNaughton's condition has
> been posted at:
> 
>   http://cbs.kgan.com/
> 
>   Peter suffered burns over 25% of his body similar to 
> Adrienne Alpert.  An update on Adrienne's condition is 
> currently available at:
> 
>   http://abcnews.go.com/local/kabc/news/37471_5282000.html
> 
> 
> __________________________________________________________________
> 
> 
>   rgonsett@connectnet.com  or  telephone (760) 723-2700.
> 
>   CGC Communicator articles may be reproduced in any form provided
>   they are unaltered and credit is given to Communications General
>   Corporation and the originating authors, when named.  Past
>   issues may be viewed and searched at  http://www.bext.com/cgc/
>   courtesy of Bext Corporation.
> 
> ------------------------------------------------------------------
> _________________________    End 

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