Lineworkers Keep The Lights On

April 18, 2018

Wednesday is National Lineman Appreciation Day

Don Brown, a 31-year lineworker for Gulf Power, has served on many storm restoration trips over the years, but he knew that the recent trip to assist Puerto Rico with power restoration was going to be different from the first day he arrived on the hurricane-ravaged island.

His crews’ first assignment was to repair a pole and a line that stretched across a gorge that spanned some 1,800 feet wide. They set the new pole, then he had to go down into the gorge to retrieve the wire that was wrapped around some trees below.

“I rappelled down with another lineworker and a chainsaw,” said Brown, who works in the Pine Forest Office in Pensacola.

When they dropped to the trees, they realized what they thought was a tree only six inches in diameter was ended up being much larger, he said. “We had to cut down that tree. We knew right then it wasn’t going to be a cakewalk,” he said.

Brown was part of a Gulf Power team of eight lineworkers and three support personnel who spent 60 days from late January to March restoring power on the island that was devastated by Hurricane Maria last year.

They were joined by other lineworkers from sister companies Alabama Power, Mississippi Power, Georgia Power, as well as Minnesota Power. The power companies’ bucket trucks were ferried by barge from Mobile, Alabama to Puerto Rico in advance of the teams’ arrival.

Brown said one of the trucks ended up being the one he uses here at Gulf Power, but that was about the only thing that was familiar on this storm trip.

They worked in mountainous areas, traversing dangerous roads up and down, repairing poles and wire in densely vegetated areas.

“The line work was not Linework 101,” he said. “They told us when we got there it was something we haven’t done before and that was true. It was totally different.”

They worked 16-hour days, seven days a week for the two months they were in Puerto Rico.

Fortunately for Brown, his rappelling experience when he was in the military helped with going up and down the steep gorges.

“It wasn’t for the weak,” he said. “If you weren’t in shape the first two weeks, you got in shape after that.”

While working away from home and in such dangerous conditions, many lineworkers find the support from their families helps them stay focused on their jobs so they can work safely.

Brown made sure he talked to his wife, Angie, every day. While he was gone, she helped with paying bills and even getting work done on his hot rod vehicles that he races.

And with a laugh, he said: “But she did tell me don’t ever go on a long trip like this again.”

Photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.

Comments

7 Responses to “Lineworkers Keep The Lights On”

  1. Heba on April 18th, 2018 1:29 pm

    Thank you Don … and Thank you to everyone else that went also… This is a hard job but a very rewarding one … :)

  2. Calvinqualls on April 18th, 2018 10:21 am

    Good job Don I’m going to need you to cook on my Florida state grill when I see you

  3. lineman's wife on April 18th, 2018 9:43 am

    There job is extremely dangerous!! My husband has also gone out of town to help other co-op many times in his 14yrs of work. It’s hard watching him go to work everyday but knowing the danger his job requires him to do. I don’t tell him enough how much his family appreciates him and everything he does for us. It’s hard being a lineman,but it’s hard being a lineman’s wife also. I love my husband and all his dedication he gives to his job

  4. My2Cents on April 18th, 2018 9:42 am

    Great Job Mr. Brown & others!

  5. anne 1of2 on April 18th, 2018 9:36 am

    These people are beyond helpful doing their job. I will never forget the one who handed me a shutter from my house after Hurricane Ivan. It was up in the tree with the wire!

  6. Jay on April 18th, 2018 9:23 am

    These folks are just the salt of the earth. So nice to see a story showing how hard working and resourceful lineman are. These individuals work hard after major events to provide restoration of one of the most critical resources we have here in the US. I know we all appreciate their hard work and being a positive representative of the people of Northwest Florida.

  7. Me on April 18th, 2018 7:52 am

    These are special men that were sent over there! Not just anyone can take on that job and GP only has the very best of the best within the company!
    Thank You to all Linemen and all other GP employees for providing us with our power!
    Power-On, GP Guys!

Written by William Reynolds · Filed Under News