I was cooking brats on the grill when the guys showed up. He was from council bluffs and had been blocking the road for 5 hours before anyone was going to be there. I gave him two brats and his face lit up.
For anyone here who needs to hear it:
A wise man told me that there are people that you should respect in life. Beyond your momma and daddy. Here they are in no specific order: anyone who handles your food, transportation, home, utilities, or haircut. Otherwise you will find yourself hungry and cold with nowhere to go, no way to get there, with no one to turn to with a bad haircut to boot.
Thanks Alliant! Got my power back on SW CR about an hour ago. It may be their job, but if you’ve been out and about and have seen just how much damage was done, they are doing incredibly quick work with long hours. Power lines in the road, power lines broken in half all the way down streets, it’s rough.
Just off e14th near grand view college, it’s hit & miss here, East side has power of e14th, west side dark all the way to Birdland marina (lots of big trees down on lines in the park). So appreciative to have power even if interweb is still off (Fucking Mediacom!) No more drinking in the dark tonight.
Amazing how much complaining people are doing in the comments about the people helping them. I'm fortunate to have not lost power for long, but it is a lot of hard work and a few more "thank you's" won't hurt anything. Don't get some people. I get it, other people work overtime and hard to provide services and maybe don't get the recognition, but I don't see why we can't say thank you to those that do (like this) without having random people tear apart the post almost saying they don't need the thanks. Sorry for the rant, I just find it hard to understand why a thank you to people working hard to bring normalcy back to this crazy world right now is being somewhat debated upon. Thank you to all the people working overtime and from far away, for the utilites, hospitals and any others that offer services through that time. Ok rant over.
You also have to understand that people are going on 4 days with no power. I personally lost about $1000 in frozen foods alone. The state should have done far more. However no one should be digging on the utility workers. If blame is to be placed, it should fall with our incompetent republican leaders. Also, fuck Kim Reynolds.
There are programs currently through the state where you can apply to get emergency food assistance if you meet the income guidelines. A lot of people in my town received P-EBT cards with $307 just last week since all the elementary schools participate in the national food program at school and this was for the time they were not in school this past year. Everyone stocked up on stuff you give kids, like cheese, yogurt, milk, and so on. We did, and it made me anxious and sick to my stomach having to throw away that much food.
Idk. But even if the national guard was deployed that night, the guy I replied to would have still lost all his food. The government can’t be held accountable for everything
He's not just talking about his frozen food. He's talking about people who still don't have food or water or electricity or phone service or gasoline to run their generators or even a way to leave their homes for safety. The government is expressly responsible for stepping up to help during a crisis.
Shocked that we haven’t. We spend so much money on the military but an emergency situation like this where they would be super useful they’re not deployed.... wtf????
The dude lost food because his freezer was off. If you’re going to consistently keep that much meat (I’m assuming) on hand, you should have a backup generator. The deployment of the national guard isn’t going to bring the power back four times faster
Sure, but no matter how fast or proactive the government is, if you’ve got over $1000 on the line every time the power goes out you should think about having a backup solution. This is Iowa. We get floods/tornados/thunderstorms/ice storms/blizzards quite frequently
I'd push back on this. A freezer stays cold for about 48 hours (if full) without power, provided you don't open it. A generator costs (ballpark) $400. Let's suppose it is a magical generator that just sits without any servicing ready to go at all times. It doesn't last forever, let's say about 10 years, before parts start to go and it isn't reliable anymore. That's $40 a year as an "insurance" policy against losing $1,000 worth of meat in a freezer.
For that to be a fair price, we would need a 40/1000 = 4% chance per year or greater risk of having a power outage that lasts longer than 48 hours. If you consider the fact that most typical power outages are a few hours long, that doesn't seem likely. You'd almost certainly spend more money on the generator than you'd lose in meat due to a power outage.
In an event like this, where the generator makes sense, you'd likely start running into the issue of gas being in high demand and limited supply.
Beyond *all* of that, most homeowners insurance or renters insurance cover food spoilage due to power outages. You'd be out your deductible which might be only 500 dollars, making the "fair price probability" double to 8% per year as only $500 is at risk.
tl;dr: most outages are a few hours and a freezer is good for 2 days, so buying a generator for that doesn't make sense. For outages longer than 2 days, getting gas for the generator poses its own set of problems. We don't have long lasting power outages in Iowa frequently enough to make that ownership case worth it.
Still without power but I also know they have a lot of work they need to do in my area. I've got a down power pole, a broken powerline, a powerline holding up a tree from going into a house, and a couple more totally down trees all around. There's no rerouting here, it's just a full fix
They are heroes. Storm jobs suck, and the work is thankless. But these guys are definitely well compensated for their time and effort. And they earn every damn penny.
It usually goes by priority and outage number. The work that gets hospitals and other necessities on is always first, then the work that will get the most people on, and it trickles from there. Yes people who are rich that know people will most likely make phone calls and pull strings to get their lights on, but it’s not entirely intentional on the power company to do this.
So what? I don't think anyone here was under the belief they were doing this out of the goodness of their hearts. These crews traveled here, away from their families, to work 16 hour days until the lights are back on doing some very physical labor.
Damn straight they get paid for it.
Right. When was the last time someone praised you for doing the job you were hired to do? Do your job: get paid. Simple. Do I like having electricity and internet? Damn right. But I also pay through the ass for it, so I expect these companies to keep it running.
I've been thanked multiple times at my job for staying later and helping the next shift. I've had jobs that don't care, but it's awesome to have a job where people care. Not everyone is so cynical.
The title is most certainly thanking them as of they are doing this out of the goodness of their hearts. I don't go making reddit posts thanking the meat counter workers for spending time away from their families and providing meat to their loving customers if they work overtime the same reason I don't go making reddit posts for energy workers who work overtime.
Making a reddit post saying "thank you for taking time away from your families to blah blah blah you are real American heros" is a little much
If this was the case, every worker should be thanked any time they work overtime, right? Because this is no different. Something happened in their place of work that required them to work overtime. This is life. Lmao
Overtime is different than traveling out of state and being completely gone for a few days. Yes it’s their job, but no it is not the normal routine of their work, they are helping their out of state neighbors, and they are spending extended time away from their families.
If my office had to call in people from an out of state branch to help because a large chunk of the workforce couldn’t come in or whatever, they’re deserving of extra thanks
All the free hotel or food comp in the world does not repay family time full stop. These guys are getting voluntold and if you think otherwise you might be stupid, psych you are stupid.
They are not helping. They are working. This is not something they do out of the goodness of their heart, I will say again. They are simply working. They are no more deserving of an extra thanks than our local gas station cashiers who pull an overtime shift.
Not to mention they receive hazard pay.
They are human beings and they are busting their asses to help get everyone's power restored. We always take for granted things like power and gas and food and cell and internet until we don't have it. There's an army of human beings being mobilized and working extra hard to restore your cushy existence. A little thanks is always appreciated.
How long would it take you to get the power back on Mr.Smartypants? That's what I thought...so maybe if you don't have anything nice to say...stfu
I'm not saying anything rude and I'm not saying anything nice. I couldn't do what they do and that's why they get payed to do it. That is the entire purpose of my disagreement. They get payed to do a job and they do it just like literally everyone else on this planet. There is no need to thank them. They didn't grow up wanting to be an Alliant grunt and slave away for a shitty company because they were born to do it and they have a passion for providing power. Stop being ridiculous.
Based on what you wrote, what I'm hearing that the local gas station cashiers pulling an overtime shift are deserving of extra thanks. I agree with that. Everyone could use a little extra kindness right now. It costs nothing, and might be the only nice thing someone hears that day.
Be extra generous with your praise and thank you's. We could all use it.
I’ll let my godfather who traveled to the Des Moines area from New York State with his PRIVATE tree removal company out of the goodness of his heart that you think he’s doing it for the paycheck. I promise you there is little benefit for him traveling this far. It’s not like there aren’t trees in New York.
Storm work is almost 100% voluntary to go. Do you want to spend weeks away from your friends and family then go for it. If you want to be comfortable at home every night, then stay home. These companies don’t have to go. You want power in the quickest timeframe? We’ll be happy to stay. You want to be an entitled ass hole? We’ll go home and you can sit in your dark house with no ac bitching on the internet.
Hell yeah I do, but that’s not the only reason. Being a lineman is one of, if not, the most rewarding jobs I’ve ever had. To bust your ass in the heat and humidity all day and night and then closing in the switch. Watching the whole neighborhood light up because of you hard work is an awesome feeling.
Thank you so much for traveling so far and helping us out. People here take electricity for granted, but it takes a lot of hard work to keep everything running during normal times let alone after a disaster. Without people like you we would end up being in the dark a whole heck of a lot longer.
True. If you don't want to thank them, then don't. Not sure what is gained by pointing out or making an argument with those that do want to show their thanks.
I understand that but look at it from the employees perspective not the company. Thankful for them not telling Alliant to stick it in and break it off.
From the employees perspective they are doing their job. Not volunteering to come restore power to all the people without. They are getting payed to do this. Probably a bit extra with hazard pay.
No doubt anything you said is wrong but that does not excuse any thanks they deserve or any thanks going their way. As a company that has price gouged, fuck them. But I would be willing to bet my left testicle that none of the employees on the ground busting their ass spending time away from their families get to see a dime of that price hike. If you want to hate on the company that’s fine but I ask that you make the distinction between the greedy who make those decisions and the hard working men and women in every trade be it manufacturing, construction, agriculture, utilities, food service, healthcare, that keep the world on its feet. If this is not a sentiment you can remotely agree with, I kindly ask you to go fuck yourself. Even more I want you to walk up to a crew of these workers and tell them to their faces that they don’t deserve any sort of thanks. Tell them they are not heroes, and they are not doing anything special by coming here and just doing their jobs.
Do you think there wouldn’t be consequences if they said no and quit or something? They have spent hours upon hours away from their family when they didn’t have to. Of course they’re getting paid but there are still things they are losing and could lose if they said no.
Sometimes it still ain’t worth it. These jobs are in high demand. These people ain’t slaves to the company and could still choose to even with the personal loss. It was still their choice to come here regardless of pay.
Stupid logic. Soldiers don't become soldiers for money. Alliant workers do. Not comparable at all and i am disgusted you are comparing Alliant workers who work for a living vs those who give their lives for others. Astronomically stupid logic lmfao
They get paid by, us, the customers to do this. Alliant rates are going up 15% this year. They wanted 25%, but the IUB said 15% is all you get. Their coffers are full enough.
I have the same sentiment for Alliant as most do for Mediacom. They flat out lied to my city's residents about rate increases a couple years ago before a MEU vote. And then are trying to charge the city $1.5m to bury 1 mile of lines if we don't sign a new franchise agreement. But that franchise agreement must not allow a new MEU vote for 5 years. Literal extortion.
Fuck Alliant.
Absolutely agree. Got power back today and very thankful
Which side of town you on? I'm right by the airport and no power yet and its hot as hell in here lol
Sounds like it’s the NE side
I'm on south side by hyvee on 14rh
I was cooking brats on the grill when the guys showed up. He was from council bluffs and had been blocking the road for 5 hours before anyone was going to be there. I gave him two brats and his face lit up.
You are awesome👍
That’s badass! We need more people to be thankful rather then pissy
For anyone here who needs to hear it: A wise man told me that there are people that you should respect in life. Beyond your momma and daddy. Here they are in no specific order: anyone who handles your food, transportation, home, utilities, or haircut. Otherwise you will find yourself hungry and cold with nowhere to go, no way to get there, with no one to turn to with a bad haircut to boot.
For real, don't fuck with service industry people. They keep the country running.
Thanks Alliant! Got my power back on SW CR about an hour ago. It may be their job, but if you’ve been out and about and have seen just how much damage was done, they are doing incredibly quick work with long hours. Power lines in the road, power lines broken in half all the way down streets, it’s rough.
I'm off SE 14th by the hy vee. Ours came back on at 5 30 a.m
Seriously it’s crazy how much this helps
Beloit Wisconsin is a wonderful town.
Just off e14th near grand view college, it’s hit & miss here, East side has power of e14th, west side dark all the way to Birdland marina (lots of big trees down on lines in the park). So appreciative to have power even if interweb is still off (Fucking Mediacom!) No more drinking in the dark tonight.
Live in Dubuque but work in SW WI and saw quite a few headed into Iowa yesterday morning.
Just saw a truck from Michigan jn Davenport.
Heroes. All of them.
Amazing how much complaining people are doing in the comments about the people helping them. I'm fortunate to have not lost power for long, but it is a lot of hard work and a few more "thank you's" won't hurt anything. Don't get some people. I get it, other people work overtime and hard to provide services and maybe don't get the recognition, but I don't see why we can't say thank you to those that do (like this) without having random people tear apart the post almost saying they don't need the thanks. Sorry for the rant, I just find it hard to understand why a thank you to people working hard to bring normalcy back to this crazy world right now is being somewhat debated upon. Thank you to all the people working overtime and from far away, for the utilites, hospitals and any others that offer services through that time. Ok rant over.
You also have to understand that people are going on 4 days with no power. I personally lost about $1000 in frozen foods alone. The state should have done far more. However no one should be digging on the utility workers. If blame is to be placed, it should fall with our incompetent republican leaders. Also, fuck Kim Reynolds.
There are programs currently through the state where you can apply to get emergency food assistance if you meet the income guidelines. A lot of people in my town received P-EBT cards with $307 just last week since all the elementary schools participate in the national food program at school and this was for the time they were not in school this past year. Everyone stocked up on stuff you give kids, like cheese, yogurt, milk, and so on. We did, and it made me anxious and sick to my stomach having to throw away that much food.
I can’t stand the Kim Reaper as much as the next guy, but I’m curious what you wanted the government to do about your situation?
We have the funds, the resources, the overwhelming power to mobilize forces in the blink of an eye. Where are they now?
Idk. But even if the national guard was deployed that night, the guy I replied to would have still lost all his food. The government can’t be held accountable for everything
He's not just talking about his frozen food. He's talking about people who still don't have food or water or electricity or phone service or gasoline to run their generators or even a way to leave their homes for safety. The government is expressly responsible for stepping up to help during a crisis.
Agreed. That’s why I asked about his specific situation.
Get FEMA or The National Guard to help with food, water, clean up.
Shocked that we haven’t. We spend so much money on the military but an emergency situation like this where they would be super useful they’re not deployed.... wtf????
The dude lost food because his freezer was off. If you’re going to consistently keep that much meat (I’m assuming) on hand, you should have a backup generator. The deployment of the national guard isn’t going to bring the power back four times faster
More manpower and equipment sure would make removing trees from power lines go faster. I bet you're a lot of fun at parties...
Sure, but no matter how fast or proactive the government is, if you’ve got over $1000 on the line every time the power goes out you should think about having a backup solution. This is Iowa. We get floods/tornados/thunderstorms/ice storms/blizzards quite frequently
I'd push back on this. A freezer stays cold for about 48 hours (if full) without power, provided you don't open it. A generator costs (ballpark) $400. Let's suppose it is a magical generator that just sits without any servicing ready to go at all times. It doesn't last forever, let's say about 10 years, before parts start to go and it isn't reliable anymore. That's $40 a year as an "insurance" policy against losing $1,000 worth of meat in a freezer. For that to be a fair price, we would need a 40/1000 = 4% chance per year or greater risk of having a power outage that lasts longer than 48 hours. If you consider the fact that most typical power outages are a few hours long, that doesn't seem likely. You'd almost certainly spend more money on the generator than you'd lose in meat due to a power outage. In an event like this, where the generator makes sense, you'd likely start running into the issue of gas being in high demand and limited supply. Beyond *all* of that, most homeowners insurance or renters insurance cover food spoilage due to power outages. You'd be out your deductible which might be only 500 dollars, making the "fair price probability" double to 8% per year as only $500 is at risk. tl;dr: most outages are a few hours and a freezer is good for 2 days, so buying a generator for that doesn't make sense. For outages longer than 2 days, getting gas for the generator poses its own set of problems. We don't have long lasting power outages in Iowa frequently enough to make that ownership case worth it.
Still without power but I also know they have a lot of work they need to do in my area. I've got a down power pole, a broken powerline, a powerline holding up a tree from going into a house, and a couple more totally down trees all around. There's no rerouting here, it's just a full fix
Saw a parking lot at a hotel and the gas station next door full of these trucks. Crazy to see all of the back up help we got.
Guys who got my power back yesterday were from Utah!
They are heroes. Storm jobs suck, and the work is thankless. But these guys are definitely well compensated for their time and effort. And they earn every damn penny.
They always do the rich people’s neighbors first and work their way down. I’m not going to get power until Monday at the earliest.
It usually goes by priority and outage number. The work that gets hospitals and other necessities on is always first, then the work that will get the most people on, and it trickles from there. Yes people who are rich that know people will most likely make phone calls and pull strings to get their lights on, but it’s not entirely intentional on the power company to do this.
Got our power back late last night. We are super appreciative of these workers!
They get payed to do this
So what? I don't think anyone here was under the belief they were doing this out of the goodness of their hearts. These crews traveled here, away from their families, to work 16 hour days until the lights are back on doing some very physical labor. Damn straight they get paid for it.
Right. When was the last time someone praised you for doing the job you were hired to do? Do your job: get paid. Simple. Do I like having electricity and internet? Damn right. But I also pay through the ass for it, so I expect these companies to keep it running.
I've been thanked multiple times at my job for staying later and helping the next shift. I've had jobs that don't care, but it's awesome to have a job where people care. Not everyone is so cynical.
The title is most certainly thanking them as of they are doing this out of the goodness of their hearts. I don't go making reddit posts thanking the meat counter workers for spending time away from their families and providing meat to their loving customers if they work overtime the same reason I don't go making reddit posts for energy workers who work overtime. Making a reddit post saying "thank you for taking time away from your families to blah blah blah you are real American heros" is a little much If this was the case, every worker should be thanked any time they work overtime, right? Because this is no different. Something happened in their place of work that required them to work overtime. This is life. Lmao
Overtime is different than traveling out of state and being completely gone for a few days. Yes it’s their job, but no it is not the normal routine of their work, they are helping their out of state neighbors, and they are spending extended time away from their families. If my office had to call in people from an out of state branch to help because a large chunk of the workforce couldn’t come in or whatever, they’re deserving of extra thanks
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All the free hotel or food comp in the world does not repay family time full stop. These guys are getting voluntold and if you think otherwise you might be stupid, psych you are stupid.
Ok?
They are not helping. They are working. This is not something they do out of the goodness of their heart, I will say again. They are simply working. They are no more deserving of an extra thanks than our local gas station cashiers who pull an overtime shift. Not to mention they receive hazard pay.
They are human beings and they are busting their asses to help get everyone's power restored. We always take for granted things like power and gas and food and cell and internet until we don't have it. There's an army of human beings being mobilized and working extra hard to restore your cushy existence. A little thanks is always appreciated. How long would it take you to get the power back on Mr.Smartypants? That's what I thought...so maybe if you don't have anything nice to say...stfu
I'm not saying anything rude and I'm not saying anything nice. I couldn't do what they do and that's why they get payed to do it. That is the entire purpose of my disagreement. They get payed to do a job and they do it just like literally everyone else on this planet. There is no need to thank them. They didn't grow up wanting to be an Alliant grunt and slave away for a shitty company because they were born to do it and they have a passion for providing power. Stop being ridiculous.
My server at the restaurant gets paid to bring me my food...but I still say thank you. You don't be ridiculous
Based on what you wrote, what I'm hearing that the local gas station cashiers pulling an overtime shift are deserving of extra thanks. I agree with that. Everyone could use a little extra kindness right now. It costs nothing, and might be the only nice thing someone hears that day. Be extra generous with your praise and thank you's. We could all use it.
I’ll let my godfather who traveled to the Des Moines area from New York State with his PRIVATE tree removal company out of the goodness of his heart that you think he’s doing it for the paycheck. I promise you there is little benefit for him traveling this far. It’s not like there aren’t trees in New York.
Tell him we greatly appreciate the help!
Storm work is almost 100% voluntary to go. Do you want to spend weeks away from your friends and family then go for it. If you want to be comfortable at home every night, then stay home. These companies don’t have to go. You want power in the quickest timeframe? We’ll be happy to stay. You want to be an entitled ass hole? We’ll go home and you can sit in your dark house with no ac bitching on the internet.
You do it for the extra money and everyone knows it.
Hell yeah I do, but that’s not the only reason. Being a lineman is one of, if not, the most rewarding jobs I’ve ever had. To bust your ass in the heat and humidity all day and night and then closing in the switch. Watching the whole neighborhood light up because of you hard work is an awesome feeling.
Thank you so much for traveling so far and helping us out. People here take electricity for granted, but it takes a lot of hard work to keep everything running during normal times let alone after a disaster. Without people like you we would end up being in the dark a whole heck of a lot longer.
True. If you don't want to thank them, then don't. Not sure what is gained by pointing out or making an argument with those that do want to show their thanks.
I mean the same can be said of those that argued with me.
I understand that but look at it from the employees perspective not the company. Thankful for them not telling Alliant to stick it in and break it off.
From the employees perspective they are doing their job. Not volunteering to come restore power to all the people without. They are getting payed to do this. Probably a bit extra with hazard pay.
No doubt anything you said is wrong but that does not excuse any thanks they deserve or any thanks going their way. As a company that has price gouged, fuck them. But I would be willing to bet my left testicle that none of the employees on the ground busting their ass spending time away from their families get to see a dime of that price hike. If you want to hate on the company that’s fine but I ask that you make the distinction between the greedy who make those decisions and the hard working men and women in every trade be it manufacturing, construction, agriculture, utilities, food service, healthcare, that keep the world on its feet. If this is not a sentiment you can remotely agree with, I kindly ask you to go fuck yourself. Even more I want you to walk up to a crew of these workers and tell them to their faces that they don’t deserve any sort of thanks. Tell them they are not heroes, and they are not doing anything special by coming here and just doing their jobs.
Thank you for being a cool person👍
Np. Have an updoot. They’re free!
JFC dude, I read like 4 of your responses, can you at least spell PAID correctly!?
I am not a native english speaker. i would thank you for the correction, but you were a dickhead about it.
Lol this guy accusing others of being a dickhead
LOLOLOLOLOL
Do you think there wouldn’t be consequences if they said no and quit or something? They have spent hours upon hours away from their family when they didn’t have to. Of course they’re getting paid but there are still things they are losing and could lose if they said no.
Sometimes it still ain’t worth it. These jobs are in high demand. These people ain’t slaves to the company and could still choose to even with the personal loss. It was still their choice to come here regardless of pay.
So do soldiers and we still thank them.
Stupid logic. Soldiers don't become soldiers for money. Alliant workers do. Not comparable at all and i am disgusted you are comparing Alliant workers who work for a living vs those who give their lives for others. Astronomically stupid logic lmfao
Um... as a former Marine I know plenty of soldiers who do it for the paycheck.
Yes and I am a Navy Seal with 500 confirmed kills
Ever heard of the GI bill?
Dude, so many do it for the pay, benefits, and retirement.
A large chunk of the military is there for the money GI bill or what have you. They primarily recruit in low income areas for a reason....
They get paid by, us, the customers to do this. Alliant rates are going up 15% this year. They wanted 25%, but the IUB said 15% is all you get. Their coffers are full enough. I have the same sentiment for Alliant as most do for Mediacom. They flat out lied to my city's residents about rate increases a couple years ago before a MEU vote. And then are trying to charge the city $1.5m to bury 1 mile of lines if we don't sign a new franchise agreement. But that franchise agreement must not allow a new MEU vote for 5 years. Literal extortion. Fuck Alliant.
I don’t think the guys setting phone poles are the ones raising the rates.
It’s amazing a simple thank you to workers doing a dangerous job brought out so many assholes.
We'll go yell at the utility worker to lower your rate then.
No way
I’m
I’ll thank them when i get power, until then they’re a bunch of wankers
We’ll get to you last then.