Manager’s Message — April 2019

Dear Members:

Lineworker Appreciation Day is April 8. National studies consistently rank power line installers and repairers among the most dangerous jobs in the country, and for good reason. Laboring high in the air wearing heavy equipment and working directly with high voltage creates the perfect storm of a dangerous and unforgiving profession. But electric lineworkers are up to the task. These brave men and women are committed to safety, as well as the challenges of the job.

Plumas-Sierra Rural Electric Cooperative’s lineworkers are responsible for keeping power flowing day and night, regardless of national holidays, vacations, birthdays, weddings or other important family milestones. Beyond the years of specialized training and apprenticeships, it takes internal fortitude and a mission-oriented outlook to be a good lineworker. In fact, this service-oriented mentality is a hallmark characteristic of lineworkers. The job requires lineworkers to set aside their personal priorities to better serve their local community.

To perform their jobs successfully, lineworkers depend on their years of training, experience and each other to get the job done safely.

Equally important is their reliance on a strong support system at home. A lineworker’s family understands and supports their loved one’s commitment to the greater community during severe storms and power outages. This means in times of prolonged outages, the family and their lineworker may have minimal communication and not see each other for several days. Without strong family support and understanding, this challenging job would be all the more difficult.

In PSREC service territory and across the country, electric co-op lineworkers’ mission-focused mentality of helping others often extends beyond their commitment to their work at the co-op. Lineworkers are often familiar figures in the community. They can be found coaching youth sports teams, volunteering for local charities and serving on local advisory boards.

Monday, April 8 is Lineworker Appreciation Day. Given the dedication of PSREC’s lineworkers, both on and off the job, I encourage you to take a moment and acknowledge the many contributions they make to our local community. If you see their family members in the grocery store or out and about in town, please offer them a thank you as well.

Communications

Have you visited PSREC and PST’s Facebook pages lately? If you are curious and want the most up-to-date information about your cooperative and its subsidiary, please find us on Facebook under Plumas-Sierra Rural Electric Cooperative and Plumas-Sierra Telecommunications. Please also take a moment to review us on Google, Yelp and Facebook.

We post systemwide power outage notifications and other useful information, such as updates and tips. If you are not on Facebook, no worries! Check out www.psrec.coop and www.pst.coop to stay informed. You can also receive major, systemwide outage updates via text message. To sign up for text notifications, text PSREC to 95577.

Another method of member communication is through your smartphone with our SmartHub app, available for Apple and Android devices. You can pay your bill, view your energy-use history and contact us from the convenience of your smartphone, tablet or other devices.

Telecommunications

PST’s coax and wireless broadband services offer download speeds of up to 20Mbps. Our fiber optic services offer speeds up to 1Gbps. With these speeds, you can stream videos on multiple devices at the same time without slowing down. You could even eliminate your TV bill with streaming services.

PST has successfully completed an upgrade in part of Graeagle from old coax to fiber optic. The coax in this area was sending feedback and noise into the entire area, reducing speeds for a large portion of Graeagle. With this upgrade, service for the existing coax will be improved. PST is currently working to replace poor-condition coax with fiber optics in portions of West Quincy, and will then be doing the same for Chandler Road, American Way and Hillside. We are expanding as quickly as we can. Letting us know that you want service and what your existing service is will help us plan our expansion.

We are also pleased to announce we have a new wireless access point in Doyle and another serving the Herlong Flats area. We expect new access points in the Cowboy Joe Road and Ward Lake areas later this spring.

For more information and to sign up for service, call us at 800-221-3474 or visit www.pst.coop.

PST has submitted applications for grant funding from the California Public Utilities Commission Advanced Services Fund for parts of the Highway 70 corridor between Quincy and Graeagle, including part of Greenhorn Ranch. We are also applying for service to Johnsville, Lake Davis, parts of southern Sierra Valley, Elysian Valley and Gold Run, parts of C-Road, Mohawk Vista, and Maybe. The grants are limited to areas where the CPUC—not the homeowner— has decided that there isn’t adequate service. People outside of the grant areas will also benefit by the fiber optic being brought closer to more neighborhoods, which will improve wireless service as well as coax service. We will find out in October if we are awarded funding to proceed with these projects.

If you have any questions, or would like more information, please call me at (800) 555-2207 ext. 6076, or email me at bmarshall@psrec.coop. 

Sincerely,

Bob Marshall
General Manager