Imagine if you were a first-responder, where danger lurked at every turn, where you are expected to stand ready to respond to your country’s cry for help in a time of need, where on any given day you are required to pack up and leave your family behind, head into harm’s way without any kind of time-table for your return.
No, I’m not talking about Seal Team 6, the National Guard, the police, the fire department or EMT’s for that matter. I’m talking about your local utility lineman who may live down the street from you.
Earlier this month tens of thousands of workers from multiple utility companies from just about every state in the U.S. mobilized and went into Florida, Georgia and other parts of the Southeast to help the estimated 6.5 million people that were left without electricity.
The response to Hurricane Irma is the largest restoration workforce in U.S. history responding to one of the worst storm ever in America. In Kentucky, LG&E and KU sent 190 crew members to assist with this effort. They are a part of a nationwide mutual assistance program, where utility companies share their workforce during times of disasters.
In Kentucky, LG&E and KU sent 190 crew members to assist with this effort. They are a part of a nationwide mutual assistance program, where utility companies share their workforce during times of disasters. (Photo Provided)
Many drove down early and were in place prior to the destructive hurricane forces.
The median pay for an electrical lineman is $68,010 ($32.70 an hour) annually, but when these linemen get called to an emergency scene they can make about $50 an hour, which jumps to $75 for overtime and $100 on Sundays. Some may earn an extra $30,000 a year just from this storm, according to recent Reuters new story.
As lucrative as this may seem, almost all of these utility crews are working 16-hour days, seven days a week, with a mandatory eight hours off as they attempt to repair damage and restore power and in some cases, rebuild the entire electrical grid in some of those communities that were in the path of Irma.
There are over 115,000 linemen in the U.S., servicing over nearly 6 million miles of electrical wire across the U.S., helping to keep your lights and air conditioning (or heating) on every day.
However, utility linemen have one of the most dangerous jobs in the world. These men and women are required to venture into war torn conditions to handle high powered electrical lines. Many of these downed power lines are tangled with fallen trees and other debris, and the linemen are often working in the dark, making it that much more dangerous.
On average around 19.2 workers per 100,000 are killed on the job every year. Many other linemen suffer non-fatal loss of limbs from electrical burns and mechanical trauma. That’s more than twice the fatality rate of police officers and firemen.
To complicate those 16-hour work days, linemen are usually working in excess of 30-40 feet in the air while dealing with the Florida humidity and temperatures in excess of 90 degrees and often times dodging snake, insects, alligators, and barking homeowners who believe sitting in an un-air conditioned home is a real inconvenience.
To make matters worse, these utility workers are working in thick rubber gloves, rubber sleeves, flame retardant clothing, boots, eye protection, hard-hat and personal fall protection harnesses.
The job is very strenuous, especially during extreme heat and cold, and staying hydrated is a constant challenge.
On an average day, linemen will have to carry at least 30 pounds of equipment and tools. It’s not a job for everybody — to work as a utility lineman you have to be mentally and physically strong and cannot be shy about heights.
Over the years, some utility workers have fallen victim to criminal activity while working. And who could forget the reports that rescue workers were fired upon during Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans?
These first responders as a whole never receive the same recognition as others who risk their lives, and these linemen do it without any applause for their efforts.
With several million man-hours already logged after Irma came ashore, several workplace accidents have occurred while working under adverse conditions.
Some examples:
— A utility lineman just fell five stories to his death in Fort Lauderdale last week while restoring power to a parking garage.
— A Georgia utility lineman was severely injured when he was pinned between two trucks.
— A West Penn Power Utility lineman was electrocuted and severely injured after he came in contact with a live wire.
— An Arkansas lineman working in Ocilla was also severely injured when he was electrocuted while he was repairing electrical lines. He fortunately survived the incident.
Two men were involved in a crash at an intersection when their utility truck was T-boned, requiring both to be hospitalized. Another worker, part of the clearing team, was removing a tree when a swarm of bees left him with more than 500 bee stingers all over his body. Another lineman working on storm recovering in Florida also died of a heart attack.
When these first responders die on the job, you usually won’t find a 17-gun salute, bagpipes, TV news cameras or politicians willing to give their eulogy.
In the wake of a tragic workplace accident, many of these linemen leave behind children, spouses and friends … and most are never remembered as heroes.
These utility linemen are the unsung heroes for almost every natural disaster -— from ice storms and hurricanes to tornados and wild fires. And every single lineman do it willingly despite the hazardous condition and lack of recognition.
I personally know a handful of local linemen and have always respected the dangerous work that they do every day. During the month of September, I have kept up with my buddy and high school classmate, Chester Taylor, on his Facebook account, and I tip my hat to him and his crew for a job well done.
They returned home safe and sound this past weekend.
As a safety and risk management professional, I am surprised that there isn’t a monument erected in Washington D.C. to recognize the fallen utility linemen who have given their life or been seriously injured while trying to restore power in our communities after a natural disaster.
I would encourage elected officials to begin consideration of a monument to honor these unsung heroes. It’s time folks!
As a reader if you would like to show your appreciation for these hard working men and women, I would encourage you to donate to fallenlinemen.org. The organization’s mission is to memorialize fallen electrical line workers, and care for the families who have lost or are impacted by a severe injury of a loved one in the line of duty.
Be Safe My Friends.
Keven Moore works in risk management services. He has a bachelor’s degree from University of Kentucky, a master’s from Eastern Kentucky University and 25-plus years of experience in the safety and insurance profession. He lives in Lexington with his family and works out of both the Lexington and Northern Kentucky offices. Keven can be reached at kmoore@roeding.com.
Hats off , for the person who wrote this
This has brought tears to my eyes. Really I’m still crying as I write this .You see I’m one of them .I’ve 17 years working for the utilitie company in California, I’ve been out of work for a year and a half now because I got fired for being 4 minutes late to work .it makes me sick to my stomach when I think about it .anyway I just wanted to egallage you for writing this story , thank you .
Regards Rob Scribner.
I am so thankful someone finally said it. The linemen deserve so much more recognition than they receive. To be quite honest, I never really thought about linemen and all the hard work they do to benefit the lives of everyone until I started dating a lineman. I see how much he does to serve the people, and he does not expect a stranger to come up to him and thank him for the work he does like others do. He has gone on many storms since I’ve known him and have been gone for many days at a time, working long hours in crazy weather conditions. They deserve so much more recognition than they get. I actually ran across this article while writing a speech about why line workers should be considered first responders. Thank you so much for making this issue and the things they do known.