138 kV Line Across the Swing Path

No - 12 ft is not an acceptable planned clearance.

• The employer must determine the line's voltage and the required minimum clearance before starting work, and must maintain the Table A distance for that voltage. In 29 CFR 1926.1408 Table A, a 138 kV line falls in the 'over 50 to 200 kV' row, which calls for roughly 15 ft (confirm the figure and the current table text; the conclusion here is the same either way, because 12 ft is inside any of the applicable values).
• The distance applies to any part of the crane, the load line, the rigging, and the load - not just the boom tip. It must hold through the full swing arc, including boom deflection, tail swing, and the load drifting out under wind.
• A spotter does not make an inside-the-clearance lift legal. Spotters, proximity alarms, range control/limiting devices and insulated links are controls that may be part of a permitted procedure, or additional layers on top of required clearance - they are not a waiver.
• 'Scheduled to be de-energized next week' means energized today.

Acceptable paths forward:

1. Have the utility de-energize and visibly ground the line at the work location, with written confirmation of the circuit and switching, before any crane work.
2. Relocate the crane or re-sequence the panels so no part of the machine, rigging, or load can enter the clearance zone at any point of the operation.
3. If working near the line is unavoidable, develop the operation with a qualified person using the encroachment-prevention provisions of 1926.1408, and set up physical marking of the boundary.

De-energized is not the same as safe. Before crane work:

• Visible grounds installed at the work location by the utility - not just at the substation.
• Confirmed circuit identity. These are often double-circuit poles; verify that the circuit switched out is the one you are working under. Get the utility's written confirmation naming the circuit.
• Lockout/tagout and auto-reclose disabled, so the line cannot be re-energized while the crane is under it.
• Induced voltage and backfeed considered - a de-energized line running parallel to an energized one can carry dangerous induced voltage; the utility decides whether grounding is adequate.
• Communication plan with the utility, including who controls re-energization and how the crew is notified to clear the area.
• The crane still needs its normal controls: marked boundary, dedicated spotter who can stop the operation, and a pre-lift meeting covering the line.

If any of these is not in place - especially the visible grounds and the confirmed circuit - the line is treated as energized and the lift does not proceed.

• Dedicated means dedicated. No other duties, no rigging, no signaling the load, no paperwork. Their only job is watching clearance.
• Positioned to see both the closest point of approach and the operator, or in continuous radio contact with someone who can see the operator.
• Authority to stop the operation immediately - and the operator must stop on that signal without questioning it.
• Briefed on the voltage, the required clearance distance, and the marked boundary; carries a copy of the plan.
• Equipped with a reliable, tested means of communication (radio with charged batteries, agreed hand signals as backup).
• Never positioned under the load or where the crane could swing into them.

A spotter who is also acting as the rigger, or who has no way to stop the crane, provides no protection at all - and does not convert an inadequate clearance into an acceptable one.