Electric service crews getting ready for next storm
EUGENE, Ore. - When winter storms strike, utility crews are among the hardest working people.
So far this week, there's only been scattered power outages in rural Lane County, but crews are ready for the next round.
If you don't like working in the cold, don't apply for this job. From Noti to Oakridge, from Crow to Blue River, the crews at Lane Electric are ready to go.
"The bitter cold like this just wears you out, stiffens you," says Vester Sanders, an engineering manager at Lane Electric Cooperative.
"Vehicles are up to speed and ready to go. Chains are on, equipment's been fine tuned; fellows are prepared to respond 24/7," Spokesman Dave D'Avanzo says.
The utility tracks outages from workers call the "war room." The equipment track outages as fast as they happen. In fact, in the two years it's been in place, the duration of outages has been cut 25 to 30 percent.
"The system automatically begins to ping the meters, to see how large the event is," D'Avanzo explains.
"That really saves a lot of time. Don't need to go there. Go here. There are problems back here," Sanders says.
Once the bad weather hits, the crews at Lane Electric have so much to deal with, including access, driving conditions, the cold -- but maybe most of all: the fatigue.
"If we start an outage, we probably work 35 hours straight before we take a break, except for meals," Sanders says.
Sometimes a truck won't get the job done. That's when you call in the snowcat. Not that speed is a big requirement, but Sanders says the 12-year-old machine does pretty well.
"In the snow it'll probably do 35 or so," explains Sanders.
They'll be tired and cold. They're hoping 35 hour shifts are not ahead, but that won't stop crews from getting the job accomplished.
