January 21, 2022

An incident involving Penelec Troubleman Brad Grosvenor serves as a reminder that an accident can happen to anyone at any time, and that no job is routine.

Brad’s day started like any other. He woke up, got ready for work and headed out for his first job assignment of the day. After arriving at the worksite, he filled out a Job Briefing form, donned his personal protective equipment (PPE) and went to work reconnecting a customer’s service line.

What happened next is a bit of a mystery. Brad – who is based out of the Montrose District – suffered an injury with life-changing event potential (LCEP), and he has no recollection of the incident. By all accounts, the work Brad was assigned was a routine job – a task that he and other line workers perform on a regular basis.

FirstEnergy Utilities (FEU) Safety believes that Brad was attempting to remove a downed part of a tree to make it easier to string the wire to the house and reconnect it to the mast. While he was making his cuts, a large tree piece apparently broke free and knocked him to the ground.

Brad suffered multiple injuries, including a concussion, broken vertebrae in his back and neck and a cracked sternum. He continues to recuperate from his injuries but is expected to make a full recovery.

No Job is Routine

According to his coworkers, Brad is known as a very safety-conscious employee who completes thorough job briefings. However, his decision to perform work that was not in the scope of his assignment – cutting down a tree – created exposures that led to his LCEP.

“You can’t accept unnecessary risk in this line of work,” said Josh Harvey, Brad’s supervisor. “Employees must always think one step ahead – understand what it going to happen before you take any action. If you make one wrong decision, it could lead to devastating results.”

As supervisor, Regional Operations, Josh encourages his team to know when to step away from a job and re-evaluate the situation. “Our employees deal with a lot of unpredictable conditions when working in the field. I tell them to always have a questioning attitude and to never be afraid to ask for help.”

Due to previous work experience, Brad had the expertise and the tools to complete the job, but he was performing the task alone and without the knowledge of his supervisor. In addition, field employees have the option to request a vegetation contractor if a tree needs trimmed or removed to complete a job.

Brad said that he’s learned from his experience and would never want his family to go through such an ordeal again.

“I take pride in my work and try to give 110% in every job,” said Brad. “Sometimes, you need to take a step back and think about what you are doing before you do it. Getting a second opinion from a coworker or asking for assistance can help make sure you return home safely to your family, every day.”

While FirstEnergy employees – like Brad – feel a duty to serve our customers, Operations Services Director Brandon Papa stressed that safety always comes first. “Employees should never accept additional risk or sacrifice their personal safety while performing a job,” Brandon said. “We must work together in a collective, collaborative and proactive manner to identify exposures that exist, and then protect ourselves and our coworkers from those exposures.”

Brandon added: “The work will get done – we must make sure it gets done safely.”