Question: Hawaiian Electric is using drones to check its equipment. What about on private property? Do they need permission?
Answer: “Under PUC rules, we have legal authority to enter a customer’s property for the purpose of accessing our equipment. For example, meter readers will sometimes need to access a customer’s property to read a meter. As a courtesy, they will attempt to get permission from the customer,” Darren Pai, a spokesperson for Hawaiian Electric, said in an email.
PUC stands for the Public Utilities Commission, the state agency that regulates electricity, gas, telecommunications, private water/wastewater, water carriers and motor carriers.
The drone inspections, which began earlier this month on Oahu, occur at utility poles and power lines. Although a drone operator may need to enter private property to access a utility pole, the person won’t go into a home or business and electrical service at the location won’t be affected, according to Hawaiian Electric. As Pai said, the operator or other personnel will make their presence known before accessing Hawaiian Electric equipment on private property.
The utility announced last week that it has hired an Oregon-based company called Wiggins Tech to conduct wildfire safety inspections on Oahu using unmanned aircraft, commonly known as drones, alongside Hawaiian Electric staff. The aerial inspections of electrical infrastructure in areas known for wildfire risks occur weekdays between 7:30 a.m. and 5 p.m., weather permitting, it said in a news release. “Personnel will drive Hawaiian Electric or Hawaiian Electric contractor marked vehicles. If on foot, the drone operator will wear a Wiggins Tech company-branded hard hat and vest. All personnel will carry a Hawaiian Electric employee or contractor identification badge,” it said.
Wiggins specializes in inspection and mapping services for the electrical utility industry and the drones enable “Hawaiian Electric to more quickly identify issues that will help prevent or lessen the risk of wildfires,” it said.
The inspections began on the North Shore, where they will continue through early November, and proceed on the following schedule:
>> East Oahu, early November.
>> Manoa to Palolo, mid-November.
>> West Oahu, mid-November to early December.
>> Windward Oahu, early December.
>> Central Oahu, mid-December.
>> Honolulu to Pearl Harbor, mid-December.
Hawaiian Electric said that its drone program complies with all Federal Aviation Administration rules and that tampering with, damaging or interfering with “drone operations could be subject to federal enforcement or citing.”
Caregiver support
AARP Hawai‘i is sponsoring drive-thru events for family caregivers, offering them a goody bag and connections to helpful resources at Care Pit Stops on the Big Island, Maui and Oahu next month. Nearly 1 in 4 American adults is a family caregiver, and many report high levels of stress as they juggle caregiving with jobs outside the home, other family obligations and their own health needs. The AARP events will provide information about local programs and services available to caregivers and their families, while also distributing goody bags with self-care resources, a gift card for free coffee, a stress ball and a back scratcher. Care Pit Stops are scheduled for Nov. 7 from 9 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. in Hilo at the Aging and Disability Resource Center, 1055 Kinoole Street; on Nov. 14 in Kihei at the Azeka Shopping Center Makai, 1280 S. Kihei Road; and on Nov. 14 from 9 a.m. to noon in Wahiawa at Leilehua High School, according to an AARP news release. The drive-thru events are designed to provide meaningful help in the least amount of time. To register, go to aarp.org/local or call 877-926-8300.
Write to Kokua Line at Honolulu Star-Advertiser, 500 Ala Moana Blvd., Suite 2-200, Honolulu, HI 96813; call 808-529-4773; or email kokualine@staradvertiser.com.
