- Born in upstate New York but lived his entire childhood in the Pacific Northwest. He has a younger brother and sister.
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Married for more than 20 years to his wife, Christina, an elementary school teacher, and they have an 18-year-old son, Sal, a freshman at the University of Washington and a 10-year-old son, Hugo, who loves playing baseball and fishing.
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Enjoys fishing anywhere for anything. He says it remains challenging and continues to present opportunities to learn and improve.
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Relies on troubleshooting tools like the cable thumper, service testing tool, voltmeter and Kleins. As a troubleman, he also can’t live without his computer, which allows him to be more efficient by having all the mapping, work management software and communication apps at his fingertips.
Learning About the Trade
I am a first-generation electrical worker. My introduction to the industry came at a time in my early 20s, when I was in search of direction and a means to secure an income so I could become a responsible husband. My parents had met some people whose sons had attended a lineman college, and they told me about the idea. After a bit of research, line work sounded like a perfect fit for me — just the right combination of physical and mental challenge, combined with a certain element of risk. I'm very fortunate I found my way into this trade, as it's provided a wonderful opportunity for me to provide for my family while continuing to learn and grow as an individual.
Early Years
My first job at a utility was when I was offered a line apprentice position with Tacoma Power in Tacoma, Washington. While at Tacoma, I received first-rate training and work experience and was very fortunate to learn from a fantastic group of excellent journeymen who took a great deal of pride in their trade. I owe them a debt of gratitude for making me the journeyman I am today.
Day in the Life
Currently, I work as an electric first response troubleman for Puget Sound Energy (PSE). My regular tasks include scheduled customer work and a multitude of emergency response. I respond to outages, emergencies and public safety concerns on our system, subject to overtime callouts around the clock. I respond to storms around the service territory, and recently, our department has become more involved with wildfire mitigation efforts. I have become more involved with changes and improvements to our system. We are installing a lot of automated devices and smart grid technology in the field.
Safety Lesson
As a young man in this industry, I was very typical in my attitude of physicality over sensibility, but over time, maturity led to a slow progression in my thinking. I have experienced a few on-the-job injuries, some of which have had lasting effects on my mobility and quality of life, and I've learned the hard way from those. There was one tragedy, however, that was close enough I really felt it. During my apprenticeship, our region was hit by a massive windstorm, and we had more than a week straight of storm response work. The utility had its own in-house line clearance tree crews, and during that response, a veteran tree worker attempted to cut a portion of a broken pole that was on the ground. When he made his final cut, there were communication lines twisted under tension, and the pole windmilled with great force, striking him. He was hospitalized with life-threatening head injuries and eventually lost his battle for life. His name was Barry, and everyone liked him and admired him — both as an employee and as a person. This loss was felt by everyone at the utility, and it really brought the reality of the hazards we face to the forefront.
Storm Moment
In the area where I work now, our county borders British Columbia (BC), Canada, and the Fraser River drains snowmelt from interior BC to the Pacific Ocean. One year, a northeaster collided with precipitation at just the right time to produce a terrible freezing rain event. All the overhead lines in that area were coated in a layer of ice about an inch thick. We lost poles and wire all over the place. On one particular road, an entire row of transmission poles with distribution underbuild went down like a row of dominoes. It took a crew multiple days in the sub-freezing temperatures to rebuild and reconductor that entire line.
Career in the Trade
If I had to do it over again, knowing what I know now, I wouldn't change my decision to become a lineman. I'm very proud of what I do. I feel the reward of providing an essential service to my community, and I truly enjoy the opportunities I have to help people when they need it the most.
Challenges and Rewards
One of the biggest challenges in our trade is figuring out how to balance family life and work life. Overtime is a pretty heavy element of our trade, and it can be a double-edged sword. It provides a solid income so we can provide a comfortable lifestyle for our families and ourselves, but it also requires that we sacrifice a lot of quality time with family and friends. Many of us get caught up in the overtime lifestyle from a young age, and we don't realize how much we are trying to juggle until we are fully committed.
Future Plans
Moving into the future, I want to find a path that allows me to help improve the experience for lineworkers as they navigate their careers. The electric utility industry is in the early stages of massive change and growth. It's unprecedented, which is exciting but daunting at the same time. I'm eager to contribute in whatever way I can to helping the line trade conquer these challenges, as we provide energy for a demanding society, just as we've always done.
