July 29, 2019

While helium-filled Mylar balloons have grown in popularity as festive decorations, they have also become the cause of many power outages. Their metallic coating poses a risk to our electrical system. It may be hard to believe that nearly 110 Mylar balloon-related outages occurred across our service territory in 2018 – and 60 similar outages recorded so far this year.

Here are some ways to keep your party from becoming a bust:

• Use caution and avoid celebrating with metallic balloons near overhead lines
• Securely tie them to a weight so they can’t float away
• They can stay inflated for weeks – be sure to puncture and deflate when no longer in use
• Never release them into the sky
• Do not attempt to retrieve any type of balloon, kite or toy that becomes caught in a power line