Electrical safety authorities in Western Australia are looking into what may have caused a string of incidents in which cranes clashed with overhead powerlines.

Workers’ lives are at risk all around heavy machinery when it contacts live powerlines, authorities say. The danger of electrocution is carried throughout the myriad large metal objects on an average site.

A crane operator at White Gum Valley in WA swung his jib into a 132 kilovolt power line last week. Luckily he remained safe in the insulated cabin, but other employees on-site may not have been so fortunate. A similar incident was recorded recently at Balcatta as well.

Industry authorities Energy Safety say there have been seven such cases since June, the safety regulators will investigate what measures could be undertaken to reduce the risk in future.