By: Courtney Reopelle, SPEC PR Intern
San Patricio Electric Cooperative holds the responsibility to provide members with safe, affordable and reliable electric service. We work hard to fulfill these commitments in several ways, including our tree-trimming program, to ensure the safety of our members and employees.
Electricity always looks for the quickest and shortest way to the ground. It tends to jump into nearby objects, such as ladders, tools, trees or people. Members attempting to trim trees in or around power lines could find themselves in a hazardous situation.
Always contact experienced professionals to trim trees near power lines to ensure a safe environment for you and your family. While we understand the value you may hold for trees on your property, trimming them is often necessary for your continued well-being. A tree growing near a power line could cause the tree or surrounding area to catch fire if ignored too long.
We prefer our members to have at least 10 feet of clearance on either side of the line and 12 feet of clearance above and below it. Tree branches could appear an appropriate distance away, but storms might blow a branch several feet, which could create a dangerous situation for you and your family.
If you cannot decide whether a tree is too close to a power line, apply caution and report it to SPEC so we can assess the situation and determine if a tree needs trimming.
We work hard to ensure the safety of our members and employees. Any brush or trees blocking our personnel from working on power lines could pose a danger and create a longer outage response time. Overgrown trees limit our employee’s ability to climb the pole and could create a safety hazard if a lineman were to fall into a nearby tree.
In an effort to maintain power lines on a daily basis, we urge members to contact SPEC for our tree-trimming program. This key service will help members save money, keep our employees safe, and prevent outages in the communities we serve.
SPEC contracts a tree-trimming service to help prevent tree overgrowth near power lines. However, we also rely on you to report any issues you see. You play an important role in the safety of fellow members and co-op employees. If you see a situation that needs attending, please contact us at 361-364-2220 or 1-888-740-2220.