Out of state crews spend holiday restoring power to northeast Indiana

FORT WAYNE, Ind. (WANE) - There are linemen from Oklahoma, Illinois, Michigan, Kentucky, and Indianapolis working in northeast Indiana trying to restore power to customers in Fort Wayne and Allen County.

Carl Kemp, line foreman for Oklahoma Gas and Electric, said his crew traveled over 800 miles to be here to assist in the power outage. He said they're working up to 16 hours a day trying to get power back on for those still left in the dark. They're working in hot heat and dangerous debris to make sure that happens.

"As a lineman, when we go on mutual assistance, we all know what we sign on for, that's one thing we always know," Kemp said.

When linemen sign up for this job, that includes missing holidays, especially on the Fourth of July. In turn, that means these linemen will be spending less time with their families.

"I got a guy on my crew now, he just had twins a couple months ago," Kemp said, "So, it takes a special woman to be a wife or girlfriend or to someone to a lineman because we can be gone as many as 14 days."

With some families with power, and others without, Kemp said he's heard both complaints and compliments about their service.

"Usually about the third day, especially with the way the heat is right now, temperatures are up, and everybody's tempers are up too because they don't have power," he said.

Crews have worked on 139 power lines alone in Fort Wayne since Friday's storm.