Sonora, CA — Helium-filled metallic balloons are great gifts for Valentine’s Day, but not so good for PG & E.
The electric company says releasing the balloons into the air can cause power outages and other dangers.
PG & E Spokesperson Brandi Ehlers says, “They (metallic balloons) can come in contact with the lines and cause outages or bring our lines down to the ground.”
PG & E asks the public to make sure the balloons have a weight tied to them and keep them indoors. Ehlers says that sometimes these outages interrupt electric service to important facilities such as hospitals, schools and traffic lights.
“Last year in the Stockton division, which includes Calaveras County, we had 19 outages that affected more than 7,700 customers, so it’s a huge problem we want the public to be aware of on this holiday,” said Ehlers.
Here is PG&E’s list of safety tips for metallic balloons:
This post was last modified on 03/09/2014 6:48 pm
Sonora, CA — Helium-filled metallic balloons are great gifts for Valentine’s Day, but not so good for PG & E.
The electric company says releasing the balloons into the air can cause power outages and other dangers.
PG & E Spokesperson Brandi Ehlers says, “They (metallic balloons) can come in contact with the lines and cause outages or bring our lines down to the ground.”
PG & E asks the public to make sure the balloons have a weight tied to them and keep them indoors. Ehlers says that sometimes these outages interrupt electric service to important facilities such as hospitals, schools and traffic lights.
“Last year in the Stockton division, which includes Calaveras County, we had 19 outages that affected more than 7,700 customers, so it’s a huge problem we want the public to be aware of on this holiday,” said Ehlers.
Here is PG&E’s list of safety tips for metallic balloons:
Written by Tracey Petersen.
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