Squirrels and birds disrupt power supplies, create challenges or repair crews

Indore (Madhya Pradesh): Can birds or creatures like squirrels also disrupt the power supply? Yes, if the discom officials are to be believed. According to officials, such incidents are even increasing in the city and rural areas of Indore during the ongoing summer. These disruptions not only inconvenience electricity consumers, but also pose a challenge to repair personnel.

Insulators play a crucial role in the power supply system, maintaining its integrity and preventing current from flowing past the poles or wires. Just as humans experience discomfort in extreme heat, birds and other creatures exhibit similar behavior or lose their balance. During the summer, squirrels, parrots, pigeons, bats and other animals are prone to heat-related problems. Birds sitting near insulators can cause faults if they come into contact with the phase.

Similar incidents occur when animals are near jumpers. Contact with any other stage can damage a squirrel’s mouth and tail, sometimes leading to death. Monkeys have also been known to cause mistakes, sometimes resulting in broken wires or cables due to their weight.

On Tuesday afternoon, at Pardeshipura junction in Indore city, a squirrel climbed a pole about 10 meters above the ground and reached the disk, causing a fault in the 11 KV Nandanagar feeder.

Despite West Discom linemen searching for the fracture on about 40 poles, it went unnoticed until someone reported an earlier explosion at the intersection. Upon investigation, it turned out that the error was caused by the squirrel near the disk. The line was repaired after removing the squirrel carcass. Disruptions due to snakes climbing on the area grid of the Press Complex occur two to three times a year. In areas like Kila Maidan, Police Line, Polo Ground, Rajendra Nagar and Residency, peacocks flying near power lines often disrupt the supply.

“Often transportation errors occur due to creatures and birds. When such disruptions occur, electricity supply will be restored shortly. But sometimes large-scale errors occur due to mixing of phases. It takes time to detect and repair such faults by going to the power grid, poles, transformers, etc.”

Amit Tomar, MD, West Discom

Published: Thursday, April 25, 2024 10:02 IST