Cutting a high-voltage power line - video

[mklotz]

There are times cutting power isn't feasible.

My father worked for a major power company for many years as a substation operator. One of his frequently recurring jobs was to remotely operate the switches to remove power from a line before work was done on it. I never once heard him speak of working a line hot. In fact, he would tell stories about how fearful the crews were of unwittingly opening a hot line.

It's puzzling. The workers obviously know the line is hot, hence the stand-off cutter. Also, they've placed an insulating boot (red) on the nearby line. It could be there in case the cut line falls down on it or they're concerned about contacting it with the cherry picker.