PHOTO PROVIDED / THE VILLAGE REPORTER
LENDING A HAND … Noah Landel (left) and Brandon Suffel (right) of Bryan Municipal Utilities provided mutual aid assistance in Easley, South Carolina for power restoration efforts caused by the recent late January winter storm.
By: John Fryman
THE VILLAGE REPORTER
john@thevillagereporter.com
Bryan Municipal Utilities deployed two of its employees, Brandon Suffel and Noah Landel, to Easley, South Carolina, where they assisted in power restoration efforts following the recent ice storm that hit the Palmetto State in late January.
Suffel and Landel were both part of the Ohio American Municipal Power mutual aid network. They assisted other agencies in restoring power in Easley, which is located outside of Greenville, South Carolina, with a population of 27,000 residents.
“These two guys, just like the rest of the crew out there, are always willing to go and help,” said BMU electric superintendent Al Sullivan. “Sometimes it’s kind of a battle to pick a couple of guys that can go. Most of them all want to go and have that experience.”
Being a part of the Ohio American Municipal Power mutual aid network, Suffel said the criteria for providing mutual aid assistance goes through Adam Brandt, who is the BMU electric supervisor and serves as a sector coordinator for AMP Ohio.
“He (Brandt) reaches out to each red section in this corner of Ohio and Michigan,” said Suffel. “They put a call out for whoever can go or can’t go, and they get a list and how many trucks are available. There were around thirty guys from AMP Ohio who went down to South Carolina.”
The two BMU employees received a call from AMP Ohio on Wednesday, January 21, giving them a heads up on the situation. They committed themselves the following day to prepare for the long trip to South Carolina.
Suffel (bucket truck) and Landel (digger truck) got the trucks ready and eventually departed from Bryan at 5 a.m. on Friday, January 23. “We actually met the Napoleon crew (Ryan Pahl and Henry Babcock) in Napoleon, and we all drove together,” said Suffel.
Suffel, who has been employed by BMU for 22 years, and Landel, who has been with BMU for over three years in the electric department, traveled 14 hours to Easley with a digger truck and a bucket truck to help with the effort.
“They had called us early to stage because of the forecast that ice was coming,” said Suffel. “So, we went down and it took us a while with those bigger trucks to get there. We left a little bit early, and we got down there just waiting for the storm to happen. The roads were going to be bad because they’re not prepared for it like we are up here for snow removal.”
Fortunately, the Easley area didn’t get as much ice as they had predicted, but the BMU crewmen waited around for the storm to roll in on Sunday, January 25.
Once the ice storm hit Easley later that Sunday night, the power outages began. Suffel, Landel, along with two other AMP mutual aid network agencies from Napoleon and Marshall, Michigan, provided help to restore power for 30 or 40 people that same night.
With the help of Napoleon and Marshall, Michigan, BMU was able to restore power to a few hundred more people on Monday, January 26.
“Lucky for them, they didn’t get as many outages as they would have,” said Suffel. He admitted that every mutual aid situation he’s been involved in is unique.
“You just never really know what you are going to come across and see everything that can be different,” he added. “The Easley area received only half an inch of ice because they were predicting one or two inches of ice out of the storm.”
Having already been involved in other mutual aid situations during his BMU career is the most rewarding for Suffel.
“That’s the best feeling for me is when we go down and help to get the lights back on,” said Suffel. “They can’t thank us enough. I’ve been on some of them where they do have a lot of damage, and the folks have been out for many days or weeks. Getting them back on is just the best part of it honestly to me and the experience with the different scenarios that you might come across.”
Landel commented that he gained a lot of valuable experience, especially early in his BMU career helping others out in various situations.
“Being able to go down to South Carolina and learn about different systems and help other people do things different from us,” said Landel. “For me, the big part is being able to help other people. It’s a pretty gratifying experience for sure.”
Two years ago, Landel took part in his initial mutual aid trip and said the preparation for it was a little bit rushed when he and Suffel went to Tallahassee, Florida, and later to South Carolina.
“We were a little bit more prepared this time around,” he said. “Going from heat to ice was a little different.” Landel said being able to help in mutual aid situations was an important reason he chose to become an electrician.
“Making bonds with other guys is pretty special,” he said. “You have electrical linemen from different states and make connections with them on these trips to take with you for the rest of your career.
“It’s very important and that’s how you create good friendships and make a new career for yourself. This is trade work, and things can be done in many different ways—some may be right, or even better, than others.
“You can learn that from different utilities. Hopefully I’m able to teach them something and they take it with them.”
Sullivan appreciated the efforts of Suffel and Landel for taking part in their recent mutual aid assistance in South Carolina.
“We’re fortunate to have the crew that we have and the equipment that we have,” said Sullivan. “The BMU Board of Public Affairs and utilities director (Derek Schultz) that backs us and allows us to go is huge as well. We’re proud of what Brandon (Suffel) and Noah (Landel) have done.”
As a member of AMP Ohio’s mutual aid network, BMU was reimbursed for all costs associated with sending crews, vehicles, and equipment, ensuring the support does not impact local electric rates.