The Monroe Canyon fire has done more than darken skies and blacken nearly 64,000 acres. It also knocked out the lights in south central Utah, leaving small towns like Bicknell, Loa and Koosharem without power for hours at a time.
For Bicknell resident Annette Woolsey, going 30 hours without power gave her some perspective. She moved some of her food to a friend’s refrigerator and washed clothes by hand.
“Because you just do things out of habit,” she said. “You just don't realize how lucky we are to have power and everything that goes along with it.”
On July 30, Garkane Energy shut off its main power line to protect fire crews working in the area. After the power was shut off, flames ripped through six H-structures, damaging 12 poles. Linemen had to wait several hours until it was safe to repair the transmission line.
Crews braced damaged poles with bucket trucks, clamps and timber, allowing power to run through the line until more permanent repairs could be made. Garkane set up large-scale generators to supply power when crews start on Aug. 6 to make those repairs.
“I think they've done great and to bring generators to that fire like that — awful brave men,” Woolsey said about the work utility crews did last week.
The nonprofit utility company that serves as the main service provider in the area has received hundreds of supportive comments on its Facebook page. As a co-op, Garkane Energy is owned by 15,000 members across six counties in south central Utah and two counties in northern Arizona.
It’s also in charge of the service area that includes the historic Grand Canyon Lodge, which burned down a couple of weeks ago in the Dragon Bravo fire.
“All of that is still a huge burning fire, and so Garkane gets to deal with it, and we're doing our best,” said Dan McClendon, CEO of Garkane Energy.
While Garkane still has to replace poles that run power through to residents, it’s already replaced 23 distribution poles on Mormon Peak, which brought a radio tower back online. The co-op’s linemen have been working long hours to keep the lights on for thousands of people.
“So I just take my hat off to them,” said Woolsey. “I think they've done a great job, and everybody that I know thinks they have too.”
In the meantime, the area’s power will run on five generators. Once the H-structures are repaired, power will be switched to run through the main transmission line. It will take around 50 employees, including linemen, technicians and operators, to complete the work.
Marketing and member service manager Neal Brown said they expect to have power running through the main transmission line by Sunday.
Crews will be working two 16-hour days in the heat from “sun up to sun down” to get everything replaced, Brown said.
“I think working close to the fire brings extra heat, and then working in the smoke, and you just drive down the road and you get the smell of that smoke, and it's bad enough, but when you're in there, working close by, it's got to wear on you,” Brown said.
Garkane is asking residents to conserve energy starting Aug. 6 to help the generators handle the energy load. They suggest setting thermostats to 78, doing laundry ahead of time, using water heaters sparingly and foregoing non-essential electricity use.
The support Brown has seen from the community has been touching, and he thinks people will help conserve energy.
“I'm kind of overwhelmed at times of how just appreciative the members up there are in Wayne County,” he said. “I mean, they were out of power last weekend for like, 30 hours, and that can make anybody grumpy.”
McClendon said the work has been and will continue to be intense, but they’re not rushing anything so they don’t endanger crews, firefighters or residents — “because it's certainly not worth that.”
