The hot dry summer has meant trouble for some people with underground power boxes in southern and central Saskatchewan.

Ground shifting due to the dryness is causing some wires to be pulled and frayed, and that can lead to power outages.

The City of Swift Current operates the power usage within the city, but elsewhere SaskPower has been checking power boxes since Tuesday, and Jonathan Tremblay, in charge of media relations for the crown corporation, said about one-third of boxes need to either be repaired or replaced.

"We're looking at the areas of clay soil around the province, and the areas that have had little to no rain the last three months," said Tremblay. "I would say about a third of everything we're inspecting. We haven't done very many in Shaunavon, and a bit further north in Rosetown and Kindersley - maybe about 100 - but about a third either need slight repairs or sometimes complete replacement of the power box."

Residents with overhead services haven't been impacted. If wires go from a dwelling's power box up to a power pole, the ground's shifting won't cause issues, said Tremblay. It's just if there's an underground service.

Tremblay said in Regina alone they've had multiple instances of arcing or fire over the past couple weeks.

"It happens some years that ground shift may tug on some cables, maybe cause a bit of damage here and there," he said. "But in terms of pulling so much that it may cause arcing and a small fire, we may have seen this once or twice in the past decade. Meanwhile, we've seen it seven times in Regina in the past two weeks."

Tremblay said the ground is receding by six to eight inches, and that's pulling cables down and out of boxes.

Since SaskPower doesn't own infrastructure or have employees in Swift Current, any such situations would be dealt with by the City. Though Tremblay did say they would "certainly talk to them to share their experience."

"If you have an underground service, we invite customers to do a quick visual inspection of their power box area," said Tremblay. "The three things they're looking for is a tilting meter box tilting to one side or the other, or being pulled off the wall entirely, that's a good sign it's being pulled down into the ground. Another good sign is any frayed wiring at the bottom of the box. And the third one would be a new significant gap between the house and the ground around the power box area."

Residents are advised to call SaskPower if they see any of those three signs. SaskPower says they'll send someone within 72 hours, and that they might ask for a picture to be emailed, so they can send someone right away if it appears urgent.