Published Wednesday, 15 August 2012
Yellow pylons have been sighted in Co Down. (© NIE)
The temporary colour change is actually part of maintenance work to overhead lines in the Ballyclare and Lisburn areas over the summer.
Teams of painters have been covering the pylons in a first coating of yellow, before going back over them with second coat of traditional grey.
Alister Fenton, NIE Transmission Planning Engineer, said the process helps keep Northern Ireland's 3,500 towers or pylons looking their best.
"Painting the pylons yellow on the first coat, simply makes sure they don't miss a bit on the second coat," Mr Fenton explained.
"Just like the Forth Road Bridge, we paint the metal work on our towers or pylons to keep them in good condition and extend their lifespan.
"In some cases we paint the middle section of the pylon first. We can only paint the horizontal 'arms' which carry the wires when we 'de-energise' the lines.
"This means we divert the electricity elsewhere for a short period of time so that our painters can work safely."
Mr Fenton added that process is part of a continual cycle across the region.
He said: "Every year we paint approximately 175 towers. We have around 3500 towers or pylons across Northern Ireland so it is a continual cycle."