Tuesday is National Lineworker Appreciation Day, when everyone’s asked to consider the sacrifices made by those who work long hours in tough conditions to keep the power on. Indiana Michigan Power spokesperson Tracy Warner tells us I&M’s hundreds of line workers will put in 16 hour days in rough weather to get everyone back online. And they’re always on call.
“A lot of time, this work takes line workers away from their families,” Warner said. “Line workers will respond, and sometimes it’s here locally, and sometimes it’s in another state and they’re travelling far. If it’s on Christmas, they’re away from their families on Christmas, and if it’s on a birthday or another key event, a lot of times the line workers have to be away to get the power back on.”
Warner says &M’s line workers maintain more than 20,000 miles of distribution lines in the areas the company serves. That’s more than 4,500 square miles in Michigan and Indiana. Heading into the day, I&M asked customers to submit their thoughts on the things done by line workers, and received more than 2,000 responses thanking them.
