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Feb 06 , 2012
By Brandi Smith
Avista recently sent out the latest issue of the Spokane River Newsletter, a quarterly publication that keeps subscribers informed about our activities in and around the Spokane River. Below is an article from the newsletter that describes how we operate the Post Falls Dam during the winter season. Check out the latest issue and learn more about what Avista has been up to.
Winter river flows and Coeur d’Alene Lake levels
People commonly think floods occur in the spring. But did you know many of the highest levels recorded for Coeur d’Alene Lake have occurred in the winter? For example, on Christmas day in 1933 the lake reached an all-time peak of roughly eleven feet over its summer level.
Coeur d’Alene Lake is a natural lake with an outlet that naturally restricts its outflow. The primary sources of water into the lake are the St. Joe, St. Maries and Coeur d’Alene rivers. The water then flows through the outlet to create the Spokane River. Avista’s Post Falls Hydroelectric Dam is on the Spokane River, nine miles downstream of the lake’s outlet. The dam affects Coeur d’Alene Lake elevation for about half of the year. During winter and spring, lake levels are controlled entirely by the natural outlet restriction and inflows.
The winter months are generally the wet season in our region. Fluctuating temperatures, rain that occurs on top of snow, or extended heavy rain can increase flows rapidly, which in turn can result in quickly-rising river and lake elevations.
Avista’s goal each year is to draw Coeur d’Alene Lake down six to seven feet below the summer level by early January. This allows Post Falls Dam to generate electricity while providing capacity in the lake for later precipitation and runoff. Natural inflows usually exceed our turbine capacity early in the year, letting Coeur d’Alene Lake and the Spokane River find their naturally occurring levels with no influence by the dam. This free flow condition typically continues through spring run-off until late May, June or early July.
River and lake levels can change quickly. We want you to stay safe, so always use caution on the water and comply with all posted notices and closures, especially in the vicinity.
Avista has a 24-hour telephone information line that provides notification of anticipated elevation changes on Coeur d’Alene Lake, Lake Spokane and the Spokane River.
In Idaho, call (208) 769-1357, in Washington call (509) 495-8043
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Jan 19 , 2012
We just released six contractor (Asplundh) tree-trimming crews to help Puget Sound Energy clean up after their major winter storm issues on the West side of Washington.
It's a mutal aid agreement. If/when Avista needs assistance, PSE would send help our way too. Stay safe and best of luck to all the crews working in these terrible weather conditions.
The image to the right shows an electric line crew at work yesterday, not a tree-trimming crew.
UPDATE at 3:45: We just released another six electric line crews (International Line Builders) to help in the Olympia area. The previous crews we sent West were tree-trimming crews, but these are full line crews that can do repairs. Best of luck to them.
Jan 18 , 2012
An Avista electric crew spent a few hours today replacing a utility pole at our Beacon Substation in East Spokane. The original pole caught fire this morning, the exact cause was undetermined. The crew dug through roughly a foot of frost and frozen dirt around the pole before it could be removed. The new pole was placed in the same location as the original. The power lines were temporarily affixed to a nearby pole before being installed permanently on the new pole.
At 11 a.m., temperatures where hovering around 25 degrees with blowing snow at the job site. According to crew members the cold isn’t an issue, they are used to that. The trouble with snow is when they set down a piece of equipment to prep it for installation - the snow buries it in just minutes.
Preparing for an outage
Avista crews are prepared to work in any weather condition to restore your power as quickly and safely as possible. As the snow piles up around our service territory, we expect outages. You can count on Avista to get the lights back on right away, but it’s always best to be prepared at home. Check out these winter weather tips to keep in mind. Jan 06 , 2012
Crews brave the cold to bring reliable service to you in $1.4 million project
If you’ve traveled along Highway 95 in North Idaho by Silverwood recently, you may have seen Avista natural gas crews working alongside the busy highway. We wanted to let you know what they are up to. Our crews are relocating and increasing capacity for six miles of natural gas pipeline to accommodate a newly constructed highway.
The Idaho Department of Transportation is reconstructing a portion of Highway 95 from approximately Chilco to Athol. The highway will expand from two to four lanes, which is great for safety and traffic, but means Avista’s existing 3-inch natural gas pipeline needs to move to a new right-of-way on the east side of the road.
Avista is expanding the capacity of the pipeline from 3 to 6 inches too. Expanded capacity helps serve existing customer needs and helps prepare our infrastructure for the future. The estimated cost for this project is around $1.4 million. Part of our requests for customer rate adjustments typically includes infrastructure work like this project.
You can see from the slideshow of pictures that the crews are clearing a pathway, laying down 40-foot lengths of yellow plastic pipe, fusing them together and then burying the pipeline with sandy soil. The sandy soil protects the pipeline from being touched rocks or hard objects that could put pressure on the new pipeline. After the line is in place it will be pressure tested before being brought into service.
The project started in mid-December and should be completed by mid-March. One of the biggest hurdles the crews had to overcome recently was frost. At times crews had to dig through 12 to 24 inches of frozen ground to make a trench that goes much deeper. Typically large projects like this aren’t completed during winter months, but Avista and other utilities agreed to do the work now to accommodate the Idaho Department of Transportation’s aggressive schedule. Luckily snow hasn’t been an issue yet, but if it does, our crews will work through that too.
Dec 12 , 2011
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Kite video |
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Avista linemen show what can happen when something, like a
kite (above video) or pole (below photo) touches a live wire.
You don’t want that to be you. |
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Thief escapes potential electrocution; live wires are no joke
Someone is walking around today not knowing that he or she just received the biggest Christmas present ever - life. Without realizing it, that individual was less than a millimeter away from being electrocuted last Thursday while trying to steal copper wire from energized electrical equipment in the Post Falls area. It was the third copper theft involving electrical equipment in the Rathdrum, Coeur d’Alene, Post Falls area in the past few weeks.
A perpetrator isn’t the only person at risk with copper wire theft. Tampering with electric equipment can result in electrocution of utility workers and customers. It also costs Avista customers since replacing the stolen equipment raises the cost of maintaining our system. And, copper theft can cause power outages that disrupt businesses, schools, essential services and life in general.
We need your help to prevent this type of crime and help prevent a serious injury to someone, even death. Call Avista at (800) 227-9187 or law enforcement if you see:
• people cutting or removing wires or equipment from power facilities
• missing sections of power lines
• loose wires hanging from poles or lying on the ground
• holes in fences or cut locks at electric facilities
• people with bundles of wire
If you don’t know what coming into contact with, or touching an energized power line looks like, check out the video clip above of a safety demonstration by two Avista linemen. Remember that you should always consider an electric wire to be energized, so stay away and call us: (800) 227-9187.
Nov 07 , 2011
Avista employees rescue stranded shopping cart, remove rusted blight from Spokane River
When Avista’s Ben McArthur saw an unsightly blight in the middle of the Spokane River, near the Hamilton Street Bridge, he didn’t ignore it like the thousands of others who passed by it every day. He and his co-workers took action. A red grocery store shopping cart had found its way onto a small island in the middle of the river. No one is sure exactly how it got there. Low water levels made it stand out.
McArthur and friends would have none of it. McArthur contacted fellow employee Celene Olgeirsson who just happens to be the President of the Spokane Canoe and Kayak Club. As an experienced kayaker Olgeirsson had the right equipment and knowledge to do the heavy lifting in the water and ensure the safety of all involved.
McArthur and Olgeirsson, with the help of another Avista employee, Ray Burnham, spent a lunch hour near the end of October on the project. On a crisp, clear day, Olgeirsson glided out to the island and attached a rope to the cart, while those on shore pulled it in. The whole deal took only 45 minutes.
Avista employees do an annual volunteer river clean up near the Mission Campus and regularly find large discarded items on Avista’s adopted mile of the Centennial Trail – shopping carts, tires and furniture included. Rarely do items make it so far into the river.
McArthur returned the cart to store employees, who promised to properly dispose of the wreckage.
Kudos to McArthur, Olgeirsson and Burnham for bettering the Spokane River for the community.
* Editors note: River users should be sure to follow all posted safety warning and closure signs on the water and especially near hydroelectric facilities. For more information about safety in the river and near dams, click here. Oct 27 , 2011
The temperature is dropping and you are likely to feel the chill. So if someone knocks on your door and wants to make sure you home has enough insulation or good windows, you might be tempted to let them in. Unfortunately, sometimes they drop Avista’s name – and they do not work for us. So I wanted to share with you Avista’s standard business practices that can keep you safe from scams and misrepresentations.
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Avista field employees always wear an Avista
photo identification badge and often wear Avista
apparel and drive clearly marked Avista vehicles. | Avista does not partner with any business that goes door-to-door through neighborhoods selling attic insulation or other services, except for our Home Energy Audit contractors in Spokane County who wear Avista identification badges. We also do not recommend any business to our customers. We do offer a number of energy efficiency rebates and incentives, but we work directly with you, our customer, on those programs.
Our field employees always wear an Avista photo ID badge and often will be wearing Avista apparel and driving a clearly marked Avista vehicle (may be a magnet on the side). Employees typically do not need access to a home or business unless the customer has contacted us about a specific problem or program. Also, employees do not phone or email customers asking for confidential information.
If you are contacted by someone representing themselves as Avista, you can call us at any time at (800) 227-9187 to verify the identification of an employee and the purpose of the contact with you. It pays to be cautious and we welcome your call.
Sep 08 , 2011
While we’re not really in the habit of giving away hardhats – it turns out that one gift of a yellow safety device really meant something to a young person in the Avista service territory. The Wakeman family blogged about the experience here. Check out their blog post for the full story and a few more pictures.
This story is also a good reminder for parents out there to teach their children about how to be safe around (or simply avoid) a construction site that might pop-up someday right in front of their house during a power outage, gas leak or other maintenance work.
A thank you goes to the Wakeman’s for letting us share their blog post. Aug 11 , 2011
A little humor about an extremely serious safety topic
Today is 8/11 – the perfect day for all of us to remember to call 811 two days before we dig to locate underground utilities. In honor of the occasion and your safety, I’ve come up with the Top Ten reason’s people don’t call 811.
10. My phone’s “8” key fell off.
9. Those spray painted lines on my grass really clash with my house paint.
8. I want to get on the news for causing a power outage or gas leak in my neighborhood.
7. I think I know where the lines are . . .
6. My life and the safety of my family isn’t a top priority at the moment.
5. “Two working days!” But I only do stuff at the last minute!
4. I’ll just find them thar lines when I start diggin’.
3. The dog has been digging holes all over my yard for years and has never hit anything.
2. I’m not good at “numbers.”
1. I just can’t handle free stuff. If it’s free, it’s just not worth it.
Calling 811 two days before you dig isn’t only smart, it’s the law. Please keep this in mind today and carry the festive spirit of 811 day with you all year long.
Total honesty here, I stole the “Top Ten” idea from Eric Isaacson at Colorado Springs Utilities – who actually stole it from Dave Letterman anyway, so it’s all good. It’s worth noting that I stole the idea, and only a little of the content of the list!
Aug 09 , 2011
Home owners and contractors are reminded to call 811 at least two days before digging
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I bet these guys called before they dug. Learn from them!
#Call811 - that's it. |
This week would really, really be the wrong week to dig into an underground utility line. OK, any day is bad, but this week would be exceptionally bad. Thursday is Aug. 11 – or 8/11. Sounds a bit like “811,” right? And of course you know you can call 811 for free two days before you plan to dig to locate underground utilities. Play it safe and call before you dig. It’s the law.
To help get the word out, Avista is partnering with local Home Depot stores on Thursday, Aug. 11, to raise awareness for 811, the one-call number for locating underground utilities. It’s the perfect day to remind homeowners and contractors to call 811 at least two days before digging. All are welcome to join Avista at Home Depot stores in Spokane, Spokane Valley and Phoenix, Ore.
Avista employees will be staffing booths where customers can learn more about the free 811 service and why it’s important to call before you dig. Customers can also enter to win a $25 Avista Housewarming Gift Certificate or other promotional items.
Striking underground utilities is dangerous and can be costly. In 2010 Avista’s underground natural gas and electric lines were hit by third-parties 480 times. Calling 811 at least two working days before excavating or digging begins allows sufficient time for a professional to mark the location of any buried wires, cables or natural gas pipes.
Event Information
Who: Avista Utilities & Home Depot
What: 811 Call Before You Dig Awareness Events
Where: Home Depot Stores
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North Spokane
9116 N. Newport Hwy
10-2 p.m. |
Spokane Valley
5617 E. Sprague Ave.
10-2 p.m. |
Phoenix, Ore.
3345 N Phoenix Rd.
10-4 p.m. |
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