Alabama Power linemen appreciate close working relationship
Clanton linemen, in Alabama Power's Southern Division, restore outages as part of their daily work. (Brittany Faush)
You could call them the Clanton Gang.
They’re actually the Clanton line crew, in Alabama’s central-most city, the state’s peach-growing capital, population 8,000.
It’s the small-town atmosphere helping the group live out the Alabama Power mantra of teamwork.
Alabama Power remembers hardworking linemen from Alabama NewsCenter on Vimeo.
“It’s definitely a team effort,” said Clanton Engineering Supervisor T.J. Pruitt. “These guys work closely together. They’re all from Clanton. They grew up together. They’re basically family.”
Pruitt may be their boss, but he sees himself more as a team player working right along with them, to help them.
“They’re the ones who make it happen. I consider them heroes,” he said.
One of the “heroes,” Lineman Perry Edwards, agrees it’s an advantage to have that small-town familiarity.
“We know most everybody around here. I grew up here,” Edwards said. “We have people walk up to us on the job and want to know how things have been.”
Apprentice Lineman Bradley Brand said, “if you spend as much time as we do together, you become a family.”
“I like the tight-knit group the crew is here,” Edwards said. “We have a good time at work. We all get along great. We even hang out on the weekends.”
The crew is so close, when one is missing from work, it affects the chemistry of the entire group, Pruitt said.
“It’s definitely a lifestyle,” he said. “It’s a team atmosphere; a family atmosphere. They depend on each other to be here to get the job done.”
