Local people: Ryan Becher, Operations Lead, Red Deer
Mar 7, 2024, 21:05 PMServing more than 240 communities throughout Alberta, there’s a lot of opportunity to get to know our customers. But we also want you to get to know us. That’s why we’re excited to continue our look at those who keep the lights on.
Introducing Ryan. Born in Wainwright and residing in Red Deer, Ryan has been with us for more than 23 years. Ryan’s impact at FortisAlberta has been felt far beyond our service area, having taken part in four separate hurricane or tropical storm relief efforts where FortisAlberta crews were deployed to support with repairs and restoration.
Can you provide an example of the work the crew takes on in their day-to-day?
Organizing service work, planning for construction crews, maintaining, repairing and building the system.
Can you speak to a unique element of the job that people may not think about right away when considering the work of a FortisAlberta PLT?
When you’re on call, you’re on call 24/7. It doesn't matter if it's 1 a.m. and minus 40 degrees. You're out there restoring power while everyone is at home in bed. It's our job to make sure that when those conditions hit, we're the ones who deal with it so our customers don't have to. Also, not many people might know about our storm restoration work. I've been involved in four hurricane restoration projects (P.E.I., Cayman Islands and Turks and Caicos twice).
What are some more notable ways that your work impacts or benefits the community?
At the end of the day, keeping the lights on 24/7, no matter what, is the service that we provide. We have to be ready to go help our customers whenever we're needed. We provide an essential service that we all signed up for.
Can you talk about a highlight, success, or key memory from your time at FortisAlberta?
The four times that I’ve been called to go help with the hurricane restorations, as well as the major storm restorations that I’ve done right here in Alberta.
Can you speak to your favourite part of your work?
When we get trouble calls and the customer is grateful for what we are doing and what we are out there for, which is to safely restore their power.
What would you consider one of the more challenging parts of the job?
Conditions that we are forced to work in when the weather takes a turn. We've dealt with minus 55-degree windchill while climbing to the top of a pole to deal with an emergency restoration. Access issues to certain job sites can be challenging too. An example here might be a downed tree that impacted one of our poles during a snowstorm. In that case we may be dealing with damage to lines while also having to place the pole, or even replace it altogether.
How does the work of your crew ensure public safety throughout our service area?
Through line patrols and maintenance, we are able to identify what needs to be done as soon as possible or schedule it so that we can maintain a safe and reliable system for our customers.
In your role, what stands out as a project or service improvement you’ve been a part of putting into practice?
Getting maintenance done for increased reliability. Last Fall, there was a location where trees kept falling. They'd made contact with our poles and lines, which is obviously very dangerous for those in the area. I contacted maintenance to move that line to the other side of the roadway, away from the trees, to mitigate this problem.
What change do you feel has impacted or better connected FortisAlberta to our customers?
Social media has helped increased interaction with our customers. The outage map has also been a great tool for people to use and see what kind of storms affect our territory (lightning, windstorms, tornadoes, flooding, etc.). Communications has greatly improved since I first started which helps speed up timelines. This gives us a better opportunity to connect with customers.
When you’re not at work, what might your community members find you doing? What are you known for outside of work that might surprise us?
In the winter, you’ll find me at the hockey rink supporting my kids. I like to watch home improvement shows, Oilers hockey games and Bluejays baseball games. I also like to work out. During the summer, I like to go to Kananaskis and Penticton for camping. I also enjoy playing boardgames.
