Lincoln Electric System crews have been working 16-hour days to help restore power to victims of Hurricane Helene. Tyler Baker is part of that crew and describes to KLIN News what it was like when he and the eleven other employees arrived in Washington, Georgia late last week.
“Pulling in that morning, we got in around 7:00 a.m., and the whole town was pitch black. There’s nothing, poles down.” Baker tells KLIN News long time residents says this was the worst damage they’ve ever seen.
“Down here they have a lot of really tall Southern Pines, anywhere from 140-150 feet,” Baker says. “When they come down they do a lot of damage and they are everywhere. They’ve taken out quite a few poles and the whole place is covered with these Southern Pines.”
Baker says the LES workers have gone from neighborhood to neighborhood replacing power lines, poles and transformers. The community received 13 inches of rain, leaving behind a lot of mud. Despite not having power, Baker says they have received a big helping of southern hospitality.
“They will do anything and everything for us.” He says the community is grateful that a power company from Nebraska would leave their families and spend days helping them out. “It’s been a great experience. We’ve not had one person say anything negative at all about us being here.”
Baker says power has been restored to about 98 percent of the community and tells KLIN News they will be in Georgia until at least Thursday.
(Photos: Lincoln Electric System)