'Oh no, what did I do wrong?'
Former employee thought he caused citywide blackout during Robertson Headframe build
| Headframe Relationships: Before destruction of the Robertson Headframe, the paper is profiling Yellowknifers and their relationships to the structure. If you have a story e-mail newsdesk@nnsl.com or call 867-766-8295. |
Evan Kiyoshi French
Northern News Services
Wednesday, April 6, 2016
SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
Chris Holloway worked at Con Mine during the construction of the Robertson Headframe in 1976.
A particularly vivid memory of his involves him testing the mine's hoist system, as an electrical apprentice, when the lights across Yellowknife went dark. He thought he must have made a mistake.
"I thought, 'Oh no, what did I do wrong?'" he said.
He had helped engineers set up the system, which was used to lift heavy objects from the bottom of the 5,000-foot shaft.
He was sitting on the hoistman's seat, having been tasked with moving the power lever.
"As soon as I applied power, everything went dead, including all the power in town," said Holloway.
"We didn't know why."
Holloway said it took about 30 minutes before the breakers were reset and power was restored. After the hoist caused a few more power disruptions, one of the engineers realized the problem was a handheld radio repeater sitting too close to the electrical breaker, which applies power to the hoist motor.
"If someone keyed the mic on the radio while you were starting the hoist it would think you were calling for full power," he said. "That is a lot of power. This is what tripped the whole town off."
Nowadays, Holloway works at Ekati Diamond Mine.
He said it's too bad the Robertson Headframe is scheduled to be dismantled in the coming weeks, because it's a testament to the city's mining history.
"The city gave it a good shot in trying to save it, but we're so hung up on liability it gets ridiculous. You can't do anything anymore," he said.
Holloway said he wished the territory or city would revisit the idea of harnessing geothermal energy underneath the headframe.
"I know from when I worked there, when you go down in the ground it's hot down there. They figured they could heat half of Yellowknife with it and they could certainly heat the headframe and keep it as a museum. But whatever, I guess that's not going to happen. It's not a money making thing. It's more of a cultural thing."
