What It's Like To Be... with Dan Heath A Lineman
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Mar 10, 2026 Elden Rivas, a Houston journeyman lineman who repairs grids and leads storm crews. He talks about how electricity reaches homes, daring helicopter and Faraday-suit work on high-voltage lines, chasing outages after tornadoes, and the tiny causes of big problems like squirrels on transformers. He also shares training paths, dangerous rescues, and the radio call every crew fears.
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Union Roots Brought Safety To Linemen
- The lineman trade is generational and union-rooted, created to reduce historically extreme fatality rates.
- Elden notes the IBEW began in 1891 because half of linemen then were dying on the job, driving safety standards.
Squirrels Are Tiny Outage Machines
- Elden says squirrels routinely cause outages by touching transformers or conductors and are frequent service calls.
- He describes hundreds of responses to squirrels on transformers and a lineman sticker jokingly celebrating squirrel-caused cash.
Helicopter Linemen Use Faraday Suits
- Helicopter linemen do barehand live-work on high-voltage lines using Faraday suits while pilots hold position for precise contact.
- Elden describes chain‑mail-like Faraday suits enabling touch on 500,000V transmission wires and linemen landing from helicopters onto conductors.