Kankakee Valley REMC journeyman lineman Andy Pataky practices a pole top rescue. Though it’s something they hope to never do, linemen must be ready to act quickly to save a co-worker who has made contact with a live power line.

Just outside the Kankakee Valley REMC headquarters, linemen train for a rescue that they hope to never have to perform. It might only be a mannequin in the exercise that they are retrieving, but the training is vital. Someday, it could mean the difference between life or death for a fellow lineman.

Through the Indiana Electric Cooperatives Job Training and Safety Department, our lineworkers attend various training courses each year. One course is pole top and bucket truck rescue training.

Through this training, one by one, linemen test their skills at how quickly they can strap on their gear and either climb a pole or lower a distressed fellow lineman out of a bucket to the ground safely. Crews are expected to have the injured lineman on the ground within four minutes to then provide necessary emergency aid.

This exercise is done using a weighted mannequin to simulate a human in distress. All journeymen linemen and apprentice linemen participate in this timed exercise.

Kankakee Valley REMC puts safety first for our employees and the community. Regular safety training assures that our linemen have the proper training that they need and are prepared when a quick response is required.