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“There’s something about ice and the sound of a chainsaw,” Clint said. “I was cutting trees and my partner was 300 or 400 feet away. The sound or vibration caused the limbs to come down, breaking all around us.” Worse yet, the poles would just snap and fall like dominoes. “You may be in the bucket,” he said. “There’s nothing you can do. You just wait until they all fall.”


Janie had experienced nights of not knowing Clint’s status before, but this ice storm kept him out of the house for almost 10 days with only the occasional rest stop. “I was terrifi ed. I didn’t see him for 10 days,” she said. “He would come in to sleep for a while. I could see how exhausted he was. I was worried about the weather conditions but also their judgment because of lack of sleep. I didn’t know if it would end.” When asked why they continue to go through it, Clint simply said, “You ask yourself that


same question: Why go through it? It’s become a way of life for us. I like fi xing things and working with the great co-op family. I like helping people. It’s a good career and provides for my family.”


As for Janie, the answer is simple, “They keep the lights on and someone has to do that.” Then she paused and added one comment. “On the nights when the linemen are out, I hope that everyone remembers he left us to help them. Some people complain when the power is not instantly restored, and I understand because they don’t know what it takes to get everything working again. But I hope they always remember somebody had to leave their family, their wife, their children, so they could get the power back on.” That’s living on the lines.


WATCH!


If viewing our digital edition, click on the right to view the music video “You Know the Kind” showcasing the hard work of linemen. Access our digital edition at www.ok-living.coop or fi nd our FREE app at the Apple Newsstand, Google Play or Amazon.


Editor’s Note: This video, produced by Touchstone Energy Cooperatives, includes footage taken in the Oklahoma Panhandle and the following linemen from Tri-County Electric Cooperative (TCEC): Josh Hussey, Rob- bie Paden, Adam Garrison, Bill Paden and Caleb Stover.


Oklahoma’s electric cooperatives employ approximately 1,100 linemen who work on nearly 115,045 miles of distribution lines. These linemen bring power to 550,000 consumer-members in the state’s 77 counties.


MAY 2014 25


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