BPA linemen Matt Foltz (left) and Aaron Nowak (right) assess the damage to EWEB 115-kV transmission lines in Eugene, Oregon, Dec. 16 caused by the ice storm.
The Bonneville Power Administration’s Alvey line crew was hard at work Dec. 16-18 helping restore power to thousands of residents in Eugene, Oregon, in the aftermath of one of the worst ice storms to hit the area in decades.
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EWEB 115-kV power lines coated in ice hang a few feet off the ground where they came to rest after falling tree limbs tore them down. Tree limbs and power lines in the Eugene, Oregon, area were hard hit during a severe ice storm Dec. 15-16. BPA’s Alvey line crew was called upon Dec. 16-18 to assist Eugene Water & Electric Board in making repairs to restore power to thousands of Lane County residents.
The BPA team from the Alvey Substation received a request for assistance from the Eugene Water & Electric Board Dec. 16, to repair damaged transmission lines connecting substations in northwest Eugene. The damage was caused by tree branches that snapped under the added weight of ice from the storm. As the branches fell, so did power lines throughout the area, leaving more than 21,000 EWEB customers in Lane County without power.
“Everything was iced over,” said Adam Fargher, BPA customer service engineer. “Poles, insulators, and the lines themselves were coated in ice. Our Alvey line crew braved the 32-degree temperatures and worked throughout the day Friday to repair the EWEB 115-kV line connecting the BPA Eugene Substation to the EWEB River Road Substation.”
BPA Line Foreman III Nick Wenzl and his crew of Vince Martinez, Alan Eubanks, Matt Foltz and Aaron Nowak worked more than 16 hours to get the job done. EWEB phone calls on Saturday and Sunday put the Alvey team into action each of those days as well, repairing downed lines and responding to individual EWEB customer outages caused by the ice.
The team’s after-action summary includes short, unassuming lines about the results of their labor such as, “repaired damaged primary and secondary … reenergized 31 customers – DONE” – “…removed tree and repaired – DONE 7 houses.” The summary also includes technical descriptions of the work accomplished. While these details might make little sense to the average resident, the impact of the work was immediately clear the second the lights came back on.
Aaron Nowak, BPA Alvey lineman, attaches safety grounding cables before the crew begins repairing an EWEB 115-kV transmission line between the BPA Eugene Substation and the EWEB River Road Substation Dec. 16.
“Normally, all of our work is on transmission lines, but during the weekend, we really got involved in the distribution side of repairs,” said Wenzl. “We were turning on the lights for people and the residents would come out and tell us how thankful they were for the work we did.”
Monday morning the Alvey Substation received another call from EWEB, this time to thank the BPA team for its assistance.
“EWEB called and said they were very appreciative of the assistance we gave and how impressed they were with the work we did on the transmission line on Friday. They also said they wouldn’t hesitate to give us a call if they had any more issues with their transmission lines,” said Wenzl. “We were glad to help out. That’s why we have mutual aid agreements with our customers so we can offer assistance when it’s needed most. I’m proud of our crew and the work they did in extremely cold weather to turn the lights back on.”