Nothing strikes fear in the heart quite like a glimpse of a steely gray shark fin. But to BGE’s customers, fins can be a welcome sight.
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The fins are triangular pieces of electric equipment that are installed on power lines. They are a type of disconnect switch that our crews call “shark fins.” They are used to de-energize part of a power line when there is damage to the line.
The shark fins allow customers on one side of the switch to have their service restored while repairs can be made safely on the other side. That can greatly reduce the duration of power outages. We’ve been installing these switches—nearly 2,000 of them —and other equipment to help segment the grid to limit the effect of outages.
Another BGE fin is the “Fix-It-Now” or “FIN” crew. These skilled construction crews have more capabilities and equipment to restore service safely and quickly. BGE deploys FIN crews to help speed restoration efforts whenever possible.
Investments like these and process improvements has resulted in record-breaking reliability for customers; fewer outages and short disruption times when outages do occur.