Warm weather brings outdoor parties for graduations, birthdays and weddings. However, when foil balloons, also known as Mylar balloons, from those festivities come into contact with power lines, outages can occur.

When a foil balloon contacts a power line or a part of substation equipment, its metallic properties can cause a surge of electricity that can, in turn, cause the equipment to short-circuit. And the spark could lead to a power outage or fire.

Foil balloons were the cause of nearly 30 service interruptions between January, 2015 and May, 2016 that affected approximately 1,100 customers, for an average of about two Mylar balloon related incidents per month.

Atlantic City Electric encourages customers to help reduce foil balloon-related power outages and ensure safety by keeping the following tips in mind:

• Keep balloons tethered at all times and attached to weights.
• Properly dispose of foil balloons by puncturing the balloon to release helium that otherwise     could cause the balloon to float away.
• NEVER touch a power line. Do not attempt to retrieve a balloon, toy or kite that is entangled in an overhead power line. For assistance, call Atlantic City Electric at 1-800-833-7476.
• Always assume power lines are live and keep yourself, your belongings and anything you are carrying at least 10 feet away from power lines. 

For more information about Atlantic City Electric, visit www.atlanticcityelectric.com. Follow us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/atlanticcityelectric and on Twitter at www.twitter.com/acelecconnect. Our mobile app is available at www.atlanticcityelectric.com/mobileapp.