Company announces helicopter inspections of transmission lines in Winneshiek County

ITC Holdings Corp. is the nation's largest independent electricity transmission company.  It owns and operates high-voltage transmission facilities in Iowa, Minnesota, Illinois, Missouri, Kansas, Michigan and Oklahoma, along 15,600 circuit miles of transmission line.

The company on Monday announced it will be conducting its semi-annual aerial patrols of high-voltage transmission towers and lines, weather permitting. The helicopter patrols, which will take place over the next two weeks, are conducted to provide an overall status of the overhead transmission system that is owned and operated by ITC's Iowa-based operating entity, ITC Midwest LLC.

The aerial inspections in the company's north and northeast region will cover an area ranging approximately from the Mississippi River in Dubuque and the Quad-Cities in Iowa to the southern tier of counties in Minnesota.
           
These twice-a-year patrols include inspections of steel towers, wood poles, conductors (wires), insulators and other equipment. Crews check for damaged or worn equipment and vegetation hazards.

The inspection flights are often conducted at low altitudes to allow accurate visual inspection of equipment for lightning damage, wear or other potential problems. This is normal procedure, so there is no cause for alarm if a low-flying helicopter is sighted near transmission lines.