Safety Archives - Great River Energy https://greatriverenergy.com/category/safety/ Wed, 09 Apr 2025 14:42:42 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.7.1 https://greatriverenergy.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/GRE-favicon.png Safety Archives - Great River Energy https://greatriverenergy.com/category/safety/ 32 32 Watch out for severe weather https://greatriverenergy.com/safety/watch-out-for-severe-weather/ Wed, 09 Apr 2025 14:42:41 +0000 https://greatriverenergy.com/?p=4829 Severe Weather Awareness Week is designed to remind and educate everyone about the seasonal threats from severe weather and how to avoid them. It’s also a great time to make and practice your emergency plan, refresh your emergency preparedness kit and revisit what to do should you encounter a downed power line. Severe Weather Awareness Week is April 7-11 in Minnesota. The state conducts tornado drills April 10. […]

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]]> Special foundations used for transmission lines crossing swampy land https://greatriverenergy.com/safety/special-foundations-used-for-transmission-lines-crossing-swampy-land/ Wed, 15 Jan 2025 16:24:10 +0000 https://greatriverenergy.com/?p=4709 Great River Energy crews installed 11 special foundations known as “helical bucket piles” on the Portage Lake to Palisade power line project due to the lines crossing swampy land. Typical wood pole construction entails drilling a large hole, about 3 feet wide by 15 to 20 feet deep, and setting the pole in the open […]

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]]> Be the One: Employee speaks up and stops work for safety https://greatriverenergy.com/cooperatives-articles/be-the-one-employee-speaks-up-and-stops-work-for-safety/ Wed, 13 Nov 2024 16:57:37 +0000 https://gredev.local/?p=4626 Great River Energy’s Jim Zabel, telecommunications technician/electrician foreperson, saw a big red flag when he arrived at one of the cooperative’s communication tower sites to perform maintenance. He saw a contract crew digging a trench to access equipment 8 feet below ground. He also saw a problem: Nothing was preventing the trench walls from caving […]

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]]> Grid modernization helps crews restore power quickly after storms https://greatriverenergy.com/cooperatives-articles/grid-modernization-helps-crews-restore-power-quickly-after-storms/ Thu, 15 Aug 2024 18:49:55 +0000 https://gredev.local/?p=4543 Two separate sections of Great River Energy transmission line sustained damage over the course of a week of severe weather, but recent grid modernization efforts allowed power to be restored quickly with minimal disruption to members. Straight line winds on July 31 downed more than a dozen structures on a 69-kilovolt (kV) transmission line spanning […]

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]]> Great River Energy donates fire test hose station to Dexter Fire Department https://greatriverenergy.com/company-news/great-river-energy-donates-fire-test-hose-station-to-dexter-fire-department/ Tue, 21 May 2024 21:06:28 +0000 https://gredev.local/?p=4264 Great River Energy has donated a fire hose test station to the Dexter Fire Department, which is the department that would provide emergency services for Great River Energy’s Pleasant Valley Station in the event of a fire or site emergency. The new piece of equipment is used to test fire hoses to ensure they achieve […]

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]]> Donations support local emergency responders https://greatriverenergy.com/safety/donations-support-local-emergency-responders/ Wed, 08 May 2024 17:14:29 +0000 https://gredev.local/?p=4244 Great River Energy recently donated new equipment to local fire departments that would provide emergency services for two of the cooperative’s power plants in the event of a fire or site emergency. The fire departments serving Trimont and Dexter, Minnesota, each received a new test station that can be used to ensure their fire hoses […]

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]]> Stay clear of downed power lines during storms https://greatriverenergy.com/safety/stay-clear-of-downed-power-lines-during-storms/ Tue, 02 Apr 2024 15:22:25 +0000 https://gredev.local/?p=4195 Severe Weather Awareness Week, April 8-12, is a great time for Minnesotans to prepare for unpredictable and extreme Midwestern weather. Great River Energy and its 27 member-owner cooperatives and customers are always working to keep the power flowing to homes, farms and businesses. “During severe weather, such as tornados, straight-line winds and hail, it’s important […]

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]]> Event emphasizes importance of speaking up for safety https://greatriverenergy.com/safety/event-emphasizes-importance-of-speaking-up-for-safety/ Wed, 13 Mar 2024 17:29:32 +0000 https://gredev.local/?p=4158 Approximately 200 Great River Energy employees who work in transmission, power supply and business operations recently gathered for Safety Day. The entire day was dedicated to continuing to build and strengthen Great River Energy’s safety culture, particularly among those in safety-sensitive positions.  This year’s emphasis was on speaking up and stopping work anytime there is […]

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]]> Empowering employees to ‘Be the One’ https://greatriverenergy.com/company-news/empowering-employees-to-be-the-one/ Wed, 14 Feb 2024 17:56:20 +0000 https://gredev.local/?p=4131 Great River Energy recently launched a new safety campaign for employees called “Be the One” at the cooperative’s all-employee meeting. Be the One has a simple but critical message: Any employee has the authority to speak up for safety or to stop work if they have a safety concern. Great River Energy has hundreds of […]

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]]> Safe. Smart. Responsible: Installing bird flight diverters using drones protects lineworkers and wildlife https://greatriverenergy.com/cooperatives-articles/safe-smart-responsible-installing-bird-flight-diverters-using-drones-protects-lineworkers-and-wildlife/ Wed, 17 Jan 2024 17:39:25 +0000 https://gredev.local/?p=4089 Utilities have long taken measures to make electric infrastructure more visible and less obstructive to plants and animals. A Great River Energy project in southwest Minnesota demonstrates a new approach to keeping birds safe. Due to avian strike concerns on the CapX2020 transmission line segment between the Lyon and Hazel substations near Cottonwood, Minnesota, Great […]

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