PALMETTO, GA, April 10, 2023 – Electric membership corporations in Georgia, including Coweta-Fayette EMC, are paying tribute to lineworkers across the state in observance of Lineman Appreciation Day.
The work of line crews is important 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, and the tornado outbreak and super storms that shrieked across Alabama and Georgia in January causing thousands of outages are recent reminders of the critical need for these highly skilled professionals.
“No matter what Mother Nature throws our way, all EMC employees – particularly linemen – will deploy at a moment’s notice to help our members and community and restore electricity, a vital service that we all depend on,” said Chris Stephens, CEO of Coweta-Fayette EMC.
For their extraordinary efforts, the April 10 celebration is the eighth annual Lineman Appreciation observance in Georgia. Resolutions introduced this year in both the Georgia House and Senate mark the occasion:
House Resolution 295 introduced by Representative Don Parsons (R-Marietta)
Senate Resolution 238 introduced by Senator Bill Cowsert (R- Athens)
There are three simple ways ordinary Georgians can show their appreciation for the men and women who keep the lights on:
#ThankALineman
Tell the world you value line crews.
During the month of April, Coweta-Fayette EMC is calling upon co-op members and the community to express thanks and appreciation by sending a social-media message to line workers using the hash tag #ThankALineman.
Lineman license plate
To honor lineworkers’ service, the state created a specialty license plate that any driver can request for their vehicle.
Proceeds from the sale of “Thank a Lineman” license plates benefit the Burn and Reconstructive Centers of America, which provides assistance to burn patients and their families at the Joseph M. Still Burn Center at Doctors Hospital in Augusta.
To purchase, Georgians should visit the Department of Revenue website when renewing their annual motor vehicle registration.
Protecting a precious asset
While the specialty license plate and hash tag are optional, providing extra room for utility workers on the road is not.
Georgia added utility workers to the “pull over law” which requires drivers to leave an empty lane for law enforcement vehicles, ambulances and fire trucks attending an incident on or beside a road. Now, any motorist approaching utility linemen at an active work site – as indicated by traffic cones or flashing yellow, amber, white or red lights – must change lanes or reduce speed to below the speed limit.
Motorists who fail to do that can be fined up to $250 per incident. The law applies to all types of utility workers, including electric, natural gas, cable and telecommunications workers, right-of-way crews or utility contractors.
Coweta-Fayette EMC is a member-owned cooperative providing electricity and related services to over 80,000 consumers in Clayton, Coweta, Fayette, Fulton, Heard, Meriwether, Spalding, and Troup counties.