County to check, upgrade electrical boxes

Wednesday, Sept. 3, 2003 | 10:56 a.m.

Clark County will embark on a $3.2 million program to ensure that every electrical junction box in the county's pedestrian areas and parks does not pose a threat to the public.

The program would eliminate the danger that killed a Kentucky woman last month, officials hope.

The Clark County Commission on Tuesday approved a series of recommendations from its Public Works and Parks and Community Services departments to inventory, inspect and upgrade the boxes. The program would call for a complete inspection of more than 50,000 boxes over the next year, but department heads said the effort would be folded into a permanent, ongoing inspection program to keep the boxes safe.

The recommendations approved at the regular commission meeting comes after the electrocution death of a tourist walking along the Strip and the shock to two visitors to county parks.

Public Works Director Marty Manning told the commissioners that the work would include replacing or grounding the junction boxes' metal lids, which usually lie flush with the sidewalk along major roads. The work would include a visual inspection and a check for any electrical hazards from the box, he said.

The other, parallel element would be at the county's parks. The high-voltage boxes at the parks will have steel lids replaced with nonconductive plastic.

One issue affecting the county parks, but less so the public right-of-way under the jurisdiction of Public Works, is that the county does not know where all the junction boxes are. Part of the work would involve locating and inventoring those.

The county estimates that there are 50,000 junction boxes along the roads and rights-of-way in the unincorporated urban area and another 5,000 similar boxes at the county parks. The boxes connect electrical wires to lights, buildings, traffic signals and other needs.

County staff members had estimated as many as 70,000 or more boxes after the fatal electrocution. After refining the estimate, county officials now believe the number is closer to 50,000.

The commission approved the broad recommendations but set a Sept. 16 date for discussion on the specifics of funding and managing the program.

Manning said he would like his department to hire a contractor for the work. The contractor would be managed by his department.

Sandy Norskog, director of Clark County Real Property Management, said the best solution for the parks would be to hire four short-term employees. Norskog spoke because the Parks and Community Services Department does not directly oversee electricians, although officials said the department already has an ongoing inspection program.

Much of the work is already happening. Even before the electrocution, the county was already inspecting the junction boxes associated with streetlights as part of an ongoing upgrade effort, officials said.

At the parks, every electrical box has been visually inspected every other week, according to the county. The new program will go beyond ensuring the box lid is in place and did not represent a tripping hazard, the scope of the previous inspections.

With the stepped-up effort, already 220 junction boxes along the Strip and 300 boxes in Sunset Park, the county's busiest recreational site, have been inspected. County officials say some minor repairs have been needed but no major hazards have been identified.

Commissioner Chip Maxfield said he is concerned about the cost of the twin programs and wants staff to come back with a full picture of how the programs will be managed and funded.

"We can't protect everybody from anything that happens," Maxfield said.

His colleague on the board, Commissioner Rory Reid, suggested that the investment is a priority for the region's tourist-based economy.

"We need to make sure people feel safe when they're walking on the Strip and we want people to feel safe when they're walking in the park," Reid said.

Erik Pappa, Clark County spokesman, said the Public Works effort could be completed in 60 to 90 days if fully approved by the county commission. The parallel effort at the parks could be completed within about 30 days.

The total cost of the Public Works program would be $3 million in the first year. The cost for the similar effort at local parks would be about $232,000, Norskog said.