Mystery Beach Blast

[itsmoked]

So the cat is outta the bag. The beach blast was a direct burial cable a few feet from the surf line.. Crazy. The poor lady is lucky she was protected by some feet of sand. It's funny too that the immediate response by authorities was to fill the hole in and re-open the beach.

What I'd like to know is why did nothing go dark? No one noticed a MV line failure? Interesting.

It's fortunate no one discovered a tripped breaker and re-closed it.

[URL unfurl="true"]http://abcnews.go.com/US/mystery-deepens-rhode-island-beach-blast/story?id=32413286[/url]

Keith Cress
kcress -

http://www.flaminsystems.com

 

[Skogsgurra]

Remember the "Electric Lake" that I was asked to investigate some years ago? I have tried to locate the thread, but can't find it.

Looks like you have got your own version, an Electric Beach...

And, why not? We've already got Electric Clouds - aka Thunder.

Gunnar Englund

http://www.gke.org

--------------------------------------
Half full - Half empty? I don't mind. It's what in it that counts.

 

[mcgyvr]

A MV line only 1 foot under the sand right in the middle of a public beach? Someones head should roll for that..
I hope her lawyers are getting ready for attack mode..

I see kids digging much deeper than that everyday all up and down the coast...

 

[stevenal]

thread248-161226

Direct buried cable under a foot of sand is an NESC violation. Sure it was deeper when installed, but NESC requires installations to be maintained to code.

 

[itsmoked]

Just the fact that it was at the surf line is nuts. Around here the sand rises and fails about 4 or 5 feet every season depending on surf conditions. If it got uncovered it would have some large mechanical loads via waves applied.

That's probably why it failed, the sand shifting put it in tension.

Keith Cress
kcress -

http://www.flaminsystems.com

 

[itsmoked]

Skogs:
thread248-161226

Keith Cress
kcress -

http://www.flaminsystems.com

 

[bacon4life]

NOAA charts show an underwater cable in the area. The historical photos in Google Earth seem to show beach erosion since 1995.

 

[itsmoked]

Wow bacon, Nice sleuthing.

Keith Cress
kcress -

http://www.flaminsystems.com

 

[itsmoked]

The cable was quickly found to be abandoned (Coast Guard) so the head scratching continued.

So, the investigation has turned up Hydrogen gas. The decomposing cable bacon showed us seems to have generated H₂ in the chemistry of copper, probably the sheath, saltwater, organisms, and sand. I'd guess creating a battery in there somewhere. They found very high hydrogen levels in various places on the beach. They trenched it all to dissipate the hydrogen (they're nuts) and filled it all back in and the beach is open.

Did they remove the cable? No.

Seems the poor lady victim was smoking earlier in the day, but of course doesn't remember anything from around the time of the incident, as is typical of violent head-rattling traumas.

[URL unfurl="true"]http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/wireStory/mystery-beach-blast-rhode-island-blamed-hydrogen-gas-32669452[/url]



Keith Cress
kcress -

http://www.flaminsystems.com

 

[wayne440]

The article states "...The Salty Brine Beach cables were removed during the investigation...". Have I missed something?

 

[itsmoked]

Naw, I just missed that sentence 3 times!

Keith Cress
kcress -

http://www.flaminsystems.com

 

[wayne440]

You have a good excuse, let's say it is residual mental stress from that railroad car water heater-

 

[itsmoked]

Hi wayne440.

Is that you?
Are you back from Chicago?

Keith Cress
kcress -

http://www.flaminsystems.com

 

[wayne440]

...Are you back from Chicago?

I would never go there, I hate bending conduit.

 

[Skogsgurra]

Shall we send a couple of electricians to ground the beach? Better safe than sorry - and it will make the Cu-thieves happy.

Gunnar Englund

http://www.gke.org

--------------------------------------
Half full - Half empty? I don't mind. It's what in it that counts.

 

[itsmoked]

Is that what they're doing? Is that your "electric lake", Gunnar?

Keith Cress
kcress -

http://www.flaminsystems.com

 

[Skogsgurra]

Right you are, Keith!

They both sheepishly admitted that they were not "quite sure" why they did this.

But the beach guests were happy that someone did something to the problem. Same thing all over the World, I think.

Gunnar Englund

http://www.gke.org

--------------------------------------
Half full - Half empty? I don't mind. It's what in it that counts.

 

[mcgyvr]

It is common for hydrogen sulfide to form in anoxic regions that can easily develop in deep sand like a beach..

So if you smell rotten eggs at the beach.. Don't light up that smoke