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Linemen uphold standard
of service—despite the heat
My work day has its challenges, but surviving the summer heat is not one of them. Rarely do I have to spend much time outdoors in the heat of the day.
That’s not the case for electric power association linemen, who routinely work in the hot sun to keep your electric service reliable and safe.
The lineman’s job is one of the toughest in the electric utility business. Climbing utility poles and stringing wires in all kinds of weather and dealing with electrical hazards are serious matters.
It’s not easy to climb a pole in Mississippi’s sweltering heat and high humidity. And because power line rights of way must be kept cleared of overhanging limbs, linemen usually don’t have the benefit of shade to block the intensity of the sun’s rays.
Add their heavy load of tools and equipment to the mix, and you can understand the effort and stamina required of linemen to get the job done.
Linemen don’t have to climb every time they work on a pole, of course; they use bucket trucks where possible. But since electric power associations serve mostly rural areas, power lines have to run through some difficult-to-reach areas, including swamps, gullies and steep, kudzu-covered hillsides. Bucket trucks usually can’t reach those poles.
Mississippi’s 25 electric power associations distribute electricity to more than 706,700 electric meters, most of them residential. It takes more than 87,000 miles of line to deliver electricity to every electric power association member who wants it. And we’re always building lines to serve new residential developments, schools, industrial plants, agricultural operations and businesses.
Linemen are responsible not only for the construction of these thousands of miles of line, but also for their maintenance and repair. Repairs are never-ending; poles and lines are vulnerable to damage from storms, careless tree cutters, wildfires, automobile accidents and even animals.
Above all, linemen are concerned with safety. They are highly trained in safe work practices and highly disciplined in carrying them out. Yet even the most safety-conscious linemen can be injured when people unwittingly put obstacles in their way, such as these hazards:
Birdhouses and basketball goals: The lineman will have a hard time climbing around them.
Deer stands: A utility pole is no place for a deer stand, from both the lineman’s and the hunter’s standpoint.
Signs: These can cause a lineman to slip while climbing.
Anything mounted on a pole increases the likelihood of serious injury if the lineman loses his footing farther up the pole.
You can help make the lineman’s job safer by respecting his “workplace,” those utility poles in your landscape. And the next time you see a lineman, why not tell him you appreciate his dedicated efforts to keep your power on.
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