WAUSAU, Wis. (WSAU) -- An educational program for young students is teaching them about electrical safety. The program is called “Path To Ground.” Kelly Zagrzebski from Wisconsin Public Service says the people that work with high voltage power lines will be showing students why they must never touch or go near them. “Line electricians from throughout our service area are going into the schools and meeting with, generally, sixth graders and talking to them a little bit about the importance of safety around power lines and electricity.”
Zagrzebski says they use a display board and safety tools to show kids how electricity can injure or kill you if it travels through your body into the ground. She says that’s why they tell people to stay away from substations. “Our substations, they’re located in normally open areas. Sometimes balls, kites, gloves, things like that end up in there. We’re just warning folks to stay out of there, and what could happen.”
Zagrzebski says several years ago, students remembered their Path To Ground lessons when a school bus was involved in an accident. “The students on the bus mentioned that we should stay on the bus, they didn’t know if the wires were touching it or not, so it’s a great program and the kids really enjoy it, and the leave there taking some life skills with them.”
The Path To Ground demonstration began Thursday in the Wausau area with seventh graders at John Muir Middle School. Friday, the seventh graders at Horace Mann Middle School will see the program. The Path To Ground program will be at D.C. Everest Middle School in Weston and Prairie River Middle School in Merrill next week. Next Friday, the program will be open for all ages with the Wausau Area Home Educators in Hatley.
(Our interview with Kelly Zagrzebski can be heard on our website, here.)