DEAR EDITOR:
Re: City isn't rushing to install 'smart meters,' The Record, Jan. 25.
I for one applaud the city for taking a cautious approach to so-called "smart meters."
I hope the city will investigate the television report of fall 2011 aired on both the local news broadcasts of CBC and CTV. It concerned a house in Nanaimo which looked to have been built in the 1970s, as it seemed to resemble a "Vancouver special."
A smart meter was installed while the female homeowner was out for the day. When she came home with her children to cook dinner, she noticed the entire electrical system in the house was going crazy.
When she cooked dinner, the knobs for her stove burners seemed to act as dimmer switches for the room lights.
That night, the smart meter caught on fire and damaged the side of her home before it could be extinguished by firemen.
The power was disconnected to her home, and she and her children were left to freeze in the dark. When news media contacted B.C. Hydro, their reaction was that does happen with some older homes with older wiring. It was simply dismissive.
I would hope that the first stop this Nanaimo woman made was not to an electrical contractor but a lawyer. I can hardly believe that a house that has been around since the 1970s with no electrical problems could be so compromised within hours by this smart meter device and that the installers of that device apparently seem to bear no responsibility in the matter.
I would hope a court would think otherwise.
I urge the city and its electrical utility to investigate this report and find out if smart meters are really fire hazards.
In how many other older homes - and I don't consider a 1970s house that old given my age - have these meters caused electrical problems?
I think the residents of New Westminster need an answer before they can say if they want their old safe electrical meters changed.
Gerald Thomson, New Westminster
