On the 16th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, Hurricane Ida pummeled through Louisiana. In the days leading up to the storm, we witnessed the brotherhood of lineman and linewomen unite in anticipation of the massive restoration effort to support Entergy Louisiana.
In the latest Life on the Line blog series, we invite you to get to know Rae Lynn Hawco, a linewoman who worked the storm duty during Hurricane Ida.
Rae Lynn Hawco is a journeyman linewomen from Goose Bay, Labrador, Canada and she has been in the trade for 9.5 years. Both she and her uncle completed a 9-month powerline program together at the College of the North Atlantic.
Rae Lynn shares her proudest achievements and how she balances her schedule.
Rae Lynn is most proud of her red seal journeyman certification and being named one of the Top 100 2020 award recipients of Canada’s Most Powerful Women in Skilled Trades.
She works a shift schedule where she has 21 days on and 7 days off. To make the most of her time off, she is diligent about planning activities like sight-seeing or traveling. Like any job, it comes with tradeoffs. The downside of shift work is missing family events, but she keeps in touch with family and friends through FaceTime and text messages.
Rae Lynn shares her craziest storm and outage stories.
"Working in a swamp wearing hip waders with water up to my chest trying retrieve a broken conductor! Also, I recently just finished a 40 day storm streak in Louisiana."
We know that customers and employers show their appreciation in unique and thoughtful ways. Here's what Rae Lynn had to say about this.
"One of the kindest things employers have done over the past few years is share the articles and podcasts that I've participated in."
Here are a few pieces where Rae Lynn is featured:
- Powerline Podcast
- Linetalkers Podcast
- Daily Commercial News: Hawco climbs powerline tech ladder to reach new heights.
And lastly, Rae Lynn offers advice to people who are considering joining the lineman trade: "Don’t give up, line work is an amazing trade, amazing work, lots of challenges but the places it takes you and the people you meet, makes it all worthwhile!"
That's a wrap! If you know of a lineman, arborist, or iron worker whose story we should tell next, have them complete the Life on the Line or Life at Height form.
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At J.L. Matthews, we are a family-owned business since 1946 and are your one-stop shop for linemen, ironworkers, and arborists.
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