Exposing old mains cables, Is this safe???

[jonmic]

Hello.

I'll apologize to start with as due to my lack of knowledge on the matter I'm likely to waffle a bit and call everything by the wrong name but hopefully you'll get my point...

I am having some renovations done at home and need to have the electrical meter relocated slightly. We have been advised this can only be carried out by SP Energy and have paid them almost 2k to have the works completed. However, if we want them to do it we have to wait 3 months so they suggested digging the hole myself and exposing the main cable where it enters the house beneath the ground. By doing this myself it will speed things up and they will be able to come sooner to relocate the cable to the required location.

I have cut through the cement and dug down to where they said the cable is located and found that the cable is inside a wooden frame and encased in pitch with a row of bricks placed on top. They have asked that I remove the bricks, dig away at the pitch and expose the cable. When I asked how many cables there would be I was advised one, however my explorations have uncovered two. I found this a bit worrying as could easily have damaged the second cable as I was not expecting it to be there.

I've got to be honest, I was Shi***ng myself picking away at the pitch around the cables and I'm now extremely relieved that I have completed the work. Am I just being a big wimp or was this actually dangerous?

My question is, is this something that I should be expected to do as a member of the public with zero experience with electrical cables and all the related complexities? Probably should have asked this prior to doing the work lol...

If you made it this far thanks very much for reading and for any advice or thoughts you care to share

 

[Marvo]

I'm glad it wasn't the PILC cable that was dismantled, it was difficult to tell from the photos and I wasn't about to suggest you get close enough to take some more but either way it was a serious breach of HSE as well as their own guidelines and if they bill you for making good I would definately contest it.

I still don't understand how they could have instructed you as an unskilled person to do such a dangerous thing. I doubt even an experienced cable jointer would have dug out the bitumen potting on old live lead cables or wires but I'm glad you got lucky and it didn't result in an injury. Good luck, hopefully from here it all goes without a hitch.

 

[ipf]

With all that's occurred, especially being advised to do that excavating by a supply authority employee, I'd be demanding a meeting with their Health and Safety Officer/department.
Something tells me that it might all get sorted out pretty pronto, as a result.......and as for paying that £2K, say you feel insulted.

I think the local press could be interested, too.