Davey Tree Flipbooks

6 THE DAVEY BULLETIN | March/April 2023 EASTERN UTILITY, R/C AND DRG RESPOND TO BUFFALO BLIZZARD A devastating, deadly blizzard, deemed a "once-in-a-generation" event, claimed the lives of more than several dozen people in Buffalo, New York. The storm lasted for four days, with 36 inches out of the total 51.9 inches of lake-effect snow falling overnight, combined with winds reaching more than 70 mph. Wind chills dropped to -30 degrees Fahrenheit. Eastern Utility services crews from the Central Electric Cooperative account responded to National Grid's call for emergency assistance. From December 22 through 31 four Central Electric Cooperative account crews traveled from Worthington, Pennsylvania to Buffalo to work to restore power that had been knocked out by strong winds and downed trees. "When we were asked to go, I talked to my crews and told them I knew it was a big deal if we end up missing the holidays at home. But, we might be able to restore power so the kids can enjoy Christmas morning. The crews agreed to go," said Rob Delo, general foreman, Central Electric Cooperative account. After Delo and the crews arrived at their hotel, they were snowed in for three days. Erie County issued a travel ban, and restaurants weren't open. They were low on food. "Some employees from the Safety team tried to bring us extra supplies and food, but they couldn't make it to us because of roads being shut down," Delo said. Once the crews were able to leave the hotel and begin power restoration work, Delo directed them from a National Grid storm room. The storm room was next to the utility client's foresters' office. The foresters would hand Delo a slip with all of a job's information on it. That slip or ticket identified outage issues that required Davey assistance. Delo was assigned a feeder, also known as a main power line, which is the line that transports electricity from a substation to a service area. Delo created tickets and communicated with his line crews to direct them where they needed to go to address issues along the feeder line. This would also often involve having a plow truck clear the snow so the crews could get through. During one 17-hour day, Delo completed 61 tickets. On Christmas Day, there were a few trees that fell on a line and snapped a pole in a backyard. The lines were pinned down, over a swimming pool. "They started on that job at 5 a.m. and finished at 1 a.m. the following day," Delo said. Delo added how proud he was of the work the crews accomplished, and everyone did so in a safe manner. "It Eleven Central Electric Cooperative account employees responded to the Buffalo snowstorm. From left: James Grates, Zach Williams, Pete Fedoruk, Andy Miller, Devin Fedoruk, Bryant Douglas, Brandon Rash, Brad Simmons, Steve Bowers, Robert Cross and Rob Delo. Additional crews from Wolf Tree, Inc., a Davey company, also assisted. The Buffalo office responded to a downed tree at the home of a firefighter. He had been working in the storm for a few days straight, finally made it home for Christmas, and got called back in. MISSION

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