If you must leave the crane after contact with an energized powerline, which action should you take?

If you must leave the crane after contact with an energized powerline, which action should you take?

• A. Stay in the cab.
• B. Try to reverse the action that caused the contact.
• C. Shuffle away from the crane taking very small steps.
• D. Jump from the lowest point and land with your feet together.

Answer: (D)

When a crane touches an energized powerline, the crane and anything you’re touching can be at a different electrical potential than the ground. If you must leave, your safety goal is to minimize the current path through your body as you disconnect. Jumping clear from the equipment, rather than stepping away, helps achieve this. Jumping from the lowest point breaks contact quickly and reduces the height difference you have to bridge, while landing with your feet together keeps both feet at the same electrical potential. This minimizes step potential—the danger of current traveling between feet as you move—and lowers the chance that current will flow through your legs or torso. Staying in the cab or attempting to reverse the action keeps you connected to the energized surface, and shuffling with small steps can create a path for current across your body.

When a crane touches an energized powerline, the crane and anything you’re touching can be at a different electrical potential than the ground. If you must leave, your safety goal is to minimize the current path through your body as you disconnect. Jumping clear from the equipment, rather than stepping away, helps achieve this. Jumping from the lowest point breaks contact quickly and reduces the height difference you have to bridge, while landing with your feet together keeps both feet at the same electrical potential. This minimizes step potential—the danger of current traveling between feet as you move—and lowers the chance that current will flow through your legs or torso. Staying in the cab or attempting to reverse the action keeps you connected to the energized surface, and shuffling with small steps can create a path for current across your body.