HAZLETON, Pa. — Time-lapse video shows volunteers getting ready for a fundraiser put on by the National Sisterhood United for Journeyman Lineman.
"NSUJL's a 501 (c)(3) nonprofit that helps families of fallen and injured powerline workers after there's been an accident on the job," explained the group's founder and president Rachel Johnson. "We come in and make sure that the families have everything they need to survive and take care of their families as they deal with the aftermath of the accident."
Johnson says a lineman is killed on the job once every 10 days throughout the country.
City View Park in Hazleton is set up for the group's largest fundraiser on Father's Day weekend.
"Linemen travel from all over the country; we get guys from California, Florida, Texas, way up into the northeast, and Maine. And they travel down in three-man teams, and they compete in a series of four events," explained Johnson. "The hurt man rescue, which is a simulation of them getting a brother down from the pole should he become injured in his harness, and then the speed climb, which they have to climb up the pole as fast as they can with an egg in their mouth and climb back down. Some do it in 14 seconds, believe it or not," added Johnson along with two other mystery events.
The mayor of Hazleton tells Newswatch 16 City View Park has been a huge asset to the city throughout the pandemic, and it's going to continue to host events where people can gather and have fun.
"We have a large lineup of events this year, and even last year through the pandemic, we really utilized this to bring people together, and this is just another display of how many people can utilize this park for different ways," said Cusat.
Johnson says this lineman event will be bringing brothers together who normally only see each other in hazardous conditions.
"They're out in the worst of weather, the sweltering of heat, the coldest of temps in the north, the ice storms, hurricanes. There's a shortage of linemen all over the country, so as you see, when natural disasters happen, they come in from all over to take care of things, but it's not regular conditions that you or I would go through on the job," said Johnson.
It's going to be a brotherhood reunion on June 19.