On Oct 18, 11:34*pm, Michael Kilpatrick
wrote:
On 18/10/2012 22:39, Robin wrote:

The point is that it is absurd to imagine that the arcing suddenly
began today or that it will be significantly worse tomorrow morning.
It just happened that someone noticed it today, not yesterday or last
week, or last month even. The idea that the problem *must* be
attended to *immediately* if someone phones at, say, 3pm is just
bonkers. As I said, trees don't spring up overnight.

JOOI do you happen to know as fact that the cables did not supply
someone reliant on medical gear - for example, *a ventilator - and with
time-limited back-up facilities? *(Suppliers used to have lists of such
people and prioritise repairs accordingly.) Would you be happy to tell
them to wait while you feed your boys?

Err, what? Ask who to wait? The tree-cutters or the ventilated patient?

If they have to cut the power for three hours at some point to do the
tree work, presumably they will notify any such patient and give them
notice such that they can prepare their back-up system (assuming they do
indeed have such lists).

If the tree work takes exactly three hours then it matters not a jot
whether they do it before, during or after my boys have dinner - it's
still a three-hour period for which the patient needs to be prepared.

By the way, if the company is forced not to undertake the tree-cutting
immediately owing to the presence of a ventilated patient who needs time
to prepare or be moved elsewhere, *and someone is killed on the street
at 5pm by an arcing power-line/tree, I assume the company will still be
liable?

Michael

Electrical faults happen all the time. If there is danger they can,
will and should turn the power off as soon as possible.
People can only be notified if there is a planned shut down.
They can shut down when they like, they are entitled to come into your
house if there is danger. They can even break into your house if there
is danger.
You are living on cloud nine.
Now stop whining and get into the real world.

Do you read the Guardian by any chance?