Every year on July 10, we celebrate National Lineworker Appreciation Day. This special day honors the dedication of utility lineworkers across the country who are committed to keeping the lights on, maintaining infrastructure, and protecting public safety. Here at Seattle City Light, we want to take a moment to say “Thank You” to these hardworking individuals who are ready to respond when your power goes out.
Demanding, dangerous work
Being a lineworker is hard work. It requires great physical stamina and mental strength. The job involves climbing to great heights, navigating confined spaces, facing extreme weather, and working under demanding conditions. It’s no surprise that lineworkers are ranked among the 10 most dangerous jobs in America.
City Light has a dedicated team of more than 150 lineworkers who take on physically demanding and hazardous tasks, working on power lines and underground vaults. Alongside them, we have dozens of cable splicers and more than 100 high-voltage electrical workers who ensure our distribution network, substations, transformers, switches, and protective devices are well-maintained and repaired.
Ready to jump into action
Lineworkers are essential for maintaining public safety. They are often one of the first responders to a scene. For instance, our crews were quick to respond to last evening’s Georgetown fire at 1st Avenue South & East Marginal Way South. What likely began as a brush fire quickly spread to nearby vehicles, include several semitrucks with trailers. When Seattle Fire arrived on the scene, there were live wires on the ground preventing firefighters from approaching the fire too closely.
As seen here during the fire, several utility poles were involved with several heavily damaged.
By mid-morning the next day, crews had already replaced five poles and reconnected wires.
City Light lineworkers rushed to deenergize the wires and make conditions safe for fire crews to get the blaze under control. Overnight, our workers remained on the scene to replace five poles damaged by the fire, reconnect wires, and restore power to the area.
Making the grid stronger
Our line teams work before, during, and after a storm. They support daily customer needs as well as projects that help modernize and strengthen the grid to improve reliability and resiliency. Our grid must support increased demand from electrification and extreme weather events, such as the current heat wave.
Our commitment to you
Our lineworkers play a crucial role in our operations, both in emergencies and during regular service. They help strengthen and make our network more reliable, ensuring it can meet higher demand and endure extreme weather.
Hear directly from three of our City Light line crew members on what the job means to them by clicking on the image below.
No matter the weather, our teams work tirelessly to maintain, repair, and upgrade our power lines and system equipment to provide safe, reliable power for our customers. A big thank you and keep up the good work!