CULLMAN, Ala. – Cullman Electric Cooperative (CEC) has dispatched multiple crews south to help in the aftermath of Hurricane Sally.
“We have eight linemen working today at Pioneer Electric Cooperative in Greenville, and one of our warehouse workers has gone to assist Baldwin EMC down on the coast,” CEC Manager of Communications & External Affairs Brian Lacy said Wednesday afternoon. “Once our linemen are finished with repairs at Pioneer, they will head south and join the rest in the recovery efforts down in Baldwin County.”
Lacy said the crews will be working with others to clear debris to hasten repairs, then replacing broken poles and downed power lines.
“Linemen will work to get power lines back up and energized,” he said. “In some cases that might only require replacing broken wire, but often it’s like rebuilding the electrical grid from the ground up. If power poles are broken or damaged, they’ll start by setting a new pole and hanging new wire, new transformers and all of the other equipment that is required. Typically, right-of-way crews handle debris clean-up and removal, but sometimes in a storm situation, linemen will have to clear fallen trees or broken limbs out of the road or off the power lines in order to get their work done.”
Important to any power company’s or cooperative’s success are the relationships they have with others. Lacy said it is not uncommon for the CEC to send crews further than just Mississippi, Alabama and Florida.
“Our linemen know there will come a day when Cullman Electric Cooperative — their home, and family and friends — will need help. Our guys have traveled to Louisiana, North Carolina, Florida, Kentucky and every other state in the Southeast in recent years after hurricanes, tornadoes, blizzards and ice storms. The last time we had a major disaster back in 2011, more than 300 linemen from all over the country came here to help us,” Lacy said.
“Linemen take great pride in helping others. They know that getting power restored is one of the most important steps in helping a community start the recovery and rebuilding process,” he continued. “They also have a sense of duty to help out their fellow linemen. It’s definitely a brotherhood where even though they might not know each other, they know how hard and dangerous the job can be, especially after a natural disaster, so they are quick to answer the call for help when they know people are in a bad situation.”
While many see the linemen working to reconnect lines and secure new power poles, fewer see those working behind the scenes to keep workers fed and well taken care of.
“In addition to linemen, we regularly send members of our warehouse crew to help neighboring co-ops after major storms. There is a huge amount of material like poles, wires, transformers and other supplies needed to make repairs, as well as other logistics issues such as fuel, housing, food and laundry,” Lacy said. “Coordinating the delivery, storage and distribution of those supplies and meals among co-op employees and all of the outside linemen who have come to help is a massive undertaking. It can really slow down the recovery process if you can’t get the linemen the supplies they need as well as a good meal and some rest after a long day’s work.”
Lacy said while electric companies have enough staff on hand for a normal emergency, they quickly become overwhelmed and understaffed in the event of a natural disaster. He said this is another reason why it is vital to have good relationships with other electric companies.
“Electric companies typically have enough linemen on staff to handle the everyday construction and maintenance work, along with ordinary power outages. When a natural disaster like a hurricane, tornado or ice storm causes extensive damage, it could take those linemen weeks or months to make all of the repairs,” he said. “By sending linemen from across the state or region to an area that has been impacted, the repair work can get done much faster. Power lines are built and designed based on national standards that all linemen are trained on, so a visiting crew of linemen with the right equipment and supplies can make a huge impact in reducing the time it takes to get power restored.”
According to the CEC, as of Thursday morning, Pioneer EC had approximately 2,000 without power. Baldwin EMC still had approximately 78,000 people without power. Find updates on Baldwin County EMC at www.baldwinemc.com/hurricane/ .
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