January 25,1989 News 985-2131 Classified 986-6222 Distribution 986-1337 44 pages 25¢ ‘SERPENT and the Rainbow author Wade Davis ...under the spotlight. POWER DISRUPTION UNDER INVESTIGATION; HOMEOWNERS WANT COMPENSATION Residents shocked by N. Van surge damage RESIDENTS OF a North Vancouver townhouse hit by a San. 17 power surge that caused tens of thousands of dollars worth of damage to home electronic equipment and power circuit equipment are scrambling to find who to blame for WEST VANCOUVER Reserve Police members marked 330 sets of skis during the past weekend’s Ski Watch session in the upper parking lot of the Cypress Bowl downhill skiing area. Police were ov hand to engrave skis with driver's cence numbers. The engraved nua:bers enable authorities to identify !ost or stolen skis. The free-of-charge service will be offered again at Cypress January 23 and 29 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Above, skier Nicolette Eas has her skis engraved by Const. Dave Galloway. their losses. Power to the 26 units of the Greater Vancouver Housing Cor- poration (GVHC)-owned Walnut Gardens complex at SOl West Keith Road was disrupted at ap- proximately 1:30 p.m. when a tree being felled by a man on native reserve property located near the corner of West 3rd Street and West Keith Road toppled on to a 60,000 volt B.C. Hydro power line and knocked out a transformer. Hydro workers were called to the scene and began repairs, but several hours later residents say a transformer blew again. The surge, which residents believe may have been caused by the initial disruption or by the se- cond blow-out, meiied breaker boxes, shattered light bulbs and decorative glass ceiling light covers, and damaged televisions, VCRs and microwave ovens. The high voltage load wrecked Michael Ryan’s $4,900 business computer, $500 VCR and $400 mi- crowave oven. Ryan works on his computer from his home as a manufacturers’ representative. He was using his computer when the tree went down. “*All of a sudden a pop happen- ed. I turned the computer off, but I didn’t pull the plug,”’ he said. Residents say the second explo- sion occurred sometime between 5:30 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. Said Walnut Gardens resident Nancy Bell, ‘‘There was a big boom and a bright yellow flash. We ran to the window. One part of the transformer was hanging and swinging.”’ Walnut Gardens resident Michaela Swann faces repair bills to three televisions and a micro- wave oven. Her VCR is beyond repair. ““We were home when the first explosion took place,’’ she said. “We jumped out of our chairs. We thought there had been a chemical explosion at the waterfront. If my daughter had been fiddling with the microwave or the VCR, she could have been killed.”’ Wainut Gardens resident Cathy Squires said the residents had ask- ed the GVHC for iegal support in attempting to recoup their losses once blame for the damage has been determined, but she said they were turned down. By MICHAEL BECKER News Reporter Said GVHC insurance officer George Stables, ‘‘It’s (the incident) under active investigation at the moment. The tenants have ap- proached us for assistance, but that will be addressed once the report is in.”’ B.C. Hydro has received close to a dozen claims for damages from W. were home when the first explosion took place ... If my daughter had been fiddling with the microwave or the VCR, she couid have been killed.’’ — Michaela Swann Walnut Gardens residents and sev- eral addresses on West 3rd Street. Investigation into the surge by B.C. Hydro is not complete. And at this point the corporation is not accepting blame for the surge. Said B.C. Hydro claims super- visor Charles Glancy, ‘*Based on the information we have now, | can’t say who is to blame. | can say that according to information from the police, this outage was caused by a native Indian who was cutting down a tree. If that’s the case, we at Hydro would reluctant- ly have to refuse the claims. Glancy said he had no report of _a second transformer blow-out while Hydro crews worked to restore power to the area. Residents, who fear for future safety, want Hydro to install a voltage surge protector to shield the townhouses from a repeat in- cident. According to Brian Stanhope, vice-president of the B.C. and Yukon region of the Insurance Bureau of Canada, a homeowner’s insurance policy will only cover fire damage caused by an electrical failure. ‘‘Under normal cir- cumstances, any kind of electrical failure is not covered by a home- owner's insurance policy,’’ he said.