Metallic balloon sparks power outage in Chino | News

According to Edison, the balloon hit the power line at approximately 11 a.m. impacting almost 1,500 Edison customers in an area including Riverside Drive, Yorba, Chino, Monte Vista and Schaefer avenues and neighborhoods surrounding Sixth Street.

Power was restored to many customers at 12:40 p.m. and 60 customers were still out of power at 5:30 p.m. By 9 p.m., power was completely restored.

Streetlights flickered on Chino Avenue and various traffic signals were dark.

The Chino Valley Fire District initially received a report that a palm tree was on fire on Sixth Street but when crews arrived it turned out that a metallic balloon caused the sparking and the downed line.

Edison reports a spike in balloon-related power outages from Valentine’s Day to June graduations.

Last year, balloon-related outages were responsible for almost 420,000 hours of interrupted service and left nearly 1.5 million customers in the dark, according to Edison.

Jennifer Menjivar-Shaw, government relations manager, said metallic balloons should never be released outside.

“Please keep metallic balloons safely secured with weights inside your home,” she said. “Better yet, try latex balloons instead. Power lines and metallic balloons don’t mix.”

“When released outdoors, metallic balloons are a threat to safety and reliability and can potentially lead to serious injuries and property damage,” said Andrew Martinez, vice president of Safety, Security and Business Resiliency at Southern California Edison.

A law that went into effect in 2019 requires warnings on metallic balloons made by in-state manufacturers stating that the balloons are not intended for release and must be used with a counterweight.

The warning also states that metallic ribbons should never be used to tie a balloon.

An existing law mandates stores and vendors to sell metallic balloons secured with a weight.

Residents who see a balloon stuck in a tree or near a power line should call (800) 611-1911.