Utility crews get heroes’ welcome
Published in: Buffalo News (Buffalo, NY)
Date: 10/15/2006
By: Stephen T. Watson
A caravan of bucket trucks from a Massachusetts power company rolled down Elmwood Avenue on Saturday afternoon, receiving the kind of welcome typically reserved for rock stars and sports heroes. “You guys rock,” shouted a man standing at the corner of Elmwood and Summer Street, as about 15 trucks from Hawkeye Line Construction of Weymouth, Mass., passed by. Other residents who were out removing downed limbs and branches paused to clap and cheer, relieved to know their furnaces and lights are a step closer to turning on again.
“People are usually pretty happy to see us,” said one of the workers, who, like his peers, declined to give his name. Crews from National Grid, New York State Electric & Gas and their contractors are working furiously to help the hundreds of thousands of area residents who lost power during the devastating storm. For National Grid, about 1,500 workers from as far away as Ohio and Massachusetts are moving through the region to fix downed power lines and to reconnect customers to the electricity grid. It’s a difficult task that won’t be fully completed until next weekend, utility officials warned. National Grid as of late Saturday had 257 of its own line crews and 305 line crews from subcontractors and other utility companies in the field, spokesman Stephen Brady said. Several Hawkeye crews arrived in town late Friday and started work at 5 a.m. Saturday. Many of the contract employees said this type of post-storm recovery work is nothing new to them. They’re veterans of Hurricane Katrina, the 1998 northern New York ice storm and other disasters. On Elmwood Avenue between Allen and Bryant streets, several Hawkeye crews were working Saturday afternoon to raise and reconnect downed lines. “It’s going good. It’s going to be a long, uphill battle,” said one Hawkeye worker who was part of a crew working on Elmwood just north of Summer Street.
The work is difficult, even dangerous, but employees said they’re making steady progress. “Life’s a whole lot better when your power is on and it makes us feel good to help out,” said the Hawkeye worker who got the hero’s welcome. The workers said most residents are happy to see them, though some are impatient. The contract employees don’t know how long they’ll have to stay here, but say they don’t mind the work. The weather, however, they can do without. “It’s cold. It’s cold in October,” said the Hawkeye crew member who was on Elmwood near Summer. News Staff Reporter Sharon Linstedt contributed to this report.