If you look up in the sky, you will notice those strange red balls on Power Lines. They look like Christmas balls or fun toys, but they are there for a severe and ingenious purpose. In fact, very few people know what they do and how they have managed to save numerous lives. So, why are these huge colorful balls put on Power lines?
There is no way you can guess the truth behind them... The Red Balls that are hanging on most Power lines are not randomly there. Actually, many of them are required to specific areas. But why is that? You won’t believe the real reason...
Up until now, all we know is that we can see red spheres all over the country. However, where they came from is still a debate.
Some people claim that red balls made their first appearance in both Florida and Arkansas in the 1950s, while others believe that they began popping up in Arkansas in the 1970s. But when they came is not as important as why...
By just looking at them, you can see how enormous they are, especially when taking into consideration that they are even bigger when you see them up close. Some of the larger ones measure up at 36 inches in diameter and weigh 17 pounds.
Wait until you know more about them...
There is no standard size in the Red Balls. They are chosen depending on the height they are put on. For example, when power lines are under 50 feet of the ground, they are more likely to be 20 inches or less.
Small spheres like these are only 30 apart from each other, while bigger ones are 200 feet apart. But that’s not the most exciting part about them...
It is clear that red balls are put there in specific sizes and distances, so they serve a bigger purpose. This well-regulated system came up to save lives considering how high voltage are those power lines.
But what happens when there are no red balls? Well, the truth is shocking...
Numerous accidents have taken place on power lines when there are none of these huge colorful balls. Electrocutions is the most common problem up there, and they can hurt construction workers and, mostly, birds.
But there are even more dangers hidden on power lines...
Researchers found a fascinating fact; people whose houses are near high-voltage power lines have a better risk of getting leukemia and other cancers and have abnormal heart rhythms or miscarriages. Thankfully, there are new systems now that lower these risks and make it safe to be near or even touch power lines.
And this explains a lot...
New systems explain how birds can sit on power lines without getting electric shocks. However, this is not enough. If birds sit on two lines at once or sit on one and touch the wooden pole, this can also be hazardous for the little birds.
That’s why electric power companies have bumped up distance between lines so that birds won’t hit on two lines. However, lately, we have found more than birds on power lines...
Birds are not the only thing we spot on power lines. It is very common to see hanging shoes over the wires.
And sometimes you don’t just see one or two pairs of shoes but lots of pairs. This odd phenomenon, however, comes with an even stranger explanation...
The precise meaning of hanging shoes on power lines is different from area to area. In many places, to see lots of shoes hanging on wires means it is a street gang or drug deal zone. Another reason might be to symbolize the death of a beloved young one.
In honor of them, their family throws their shoes on wires. Yet, there is another even more shocking stat about hanging shoes...
Between years 2008 and 2015, more than 6,000 hanging shoes were removed from power line wires in Chicago city. Well, that number is enormous if you think that we are talking about only one city. But what about the red balls?
What is the actual reason for their existence? There are many facts about them that you definitely don’t know...
These huge plastic balls that are every few meters on power lines actually come in more colors than red. There are white, orange and yellow ones and they all have one thing in common: they are strictly obligatory.
What’s interesting is the perfectly system over them...
The colorful balls may look the same all over the country, but that’s not true. It is hard to spot the details, like the fact that they are closer to each other as you approach airports.
Another interesting detail is how they are put up there, especially if there are power lines over rivers or lakes. How people manage to work on those heights is unbelievable...
Construction workers whose job is to put on those huge colorful balls up there really risk their lives. When there is ground, it is relatively safe, but what happens when they have to put them over lakes and rivers?
Well, they sometimes have to do their work from helicopters. And that’s extremely hard and dangerous, and things don’t always go as planned ...
There have been multiple cases where helicopters collided with power line wires. And this can be very bad for both construction workers and the power lines.
Pilots can easily lose control and get stuck in the wires, which can be totally disastrous. We wish it was just helicopters that get stuck on power lines...
What is more terrifying than helicopters being stuck on power lines? Airplanes getting dangled on power lines! Imagine how dangerous that would be for hundreds of passengers.
Unfortunately, there have been times where planes lost control because of power lines when flying too low. This, guides us to the actual answer of why we need red balls on power lines...
Federal Aviation Administration took all the cases very seriously with vehicle collisions and took some serious decisions. Something needed to be done so that both construction workers, pilots, and airplane passengers could be safe.
And that’s when a great idea came up...
Hanging these colorful plastic balls solves the problem, and here is why; pilots can now recognize the wires and avoid them when flying low.
Thanks to the bright colors that are chosen for the balls, pilots can easily see them long before they get near them!
And, because we want pilots to see them before it is too late, that’s why they are so enormous.
The problem is now solved thanks to these plastic balls that look like Christmas decorations on power lines!
Lately, we have seen not only red or orange or yellow visibility marker spheres but also two-colored ones. And this is even more fun when looking up at the sky.
They save lives, but that’s something not many people know. They look so fun that your mind just won’t go there.
But power line balls aren’t the only colorful objects to have a powerful hidden meaning. For example, you may have noticed some houses with lots of green lights.
At first, you might think that this would be related to Halloween, but that is not the case...
Green lights are actually put for a very worthy cause. Although green is a color that not many people would go for when decorating their houses, hundreds of people choose to support this movement.
Be prepared to hear this because it may leave you with a tear in your eyes...
The color green is being used to raise awareness for veterans. It is actually a Vet Campaign so that people can show their respect and appreciation to military veterans.
It is a way to express how thankful people are for veterans protecting their country.
They are often used on the 11 of November and days before and after that date.
But there is a second reason why people put green lights on their porches, and that’s to raise awareness for Lyme disease.
Green lights symbolize Lyme disease as other colors symbolize other medical cases.
For example, red is the color for heart health issues, purple light is for domestic violence awareness, and blue is to spread awareness for autistic people!