Brian Jones from Salvo represented Cape Hatteras Electric Cooperative (CHEC), completing the rescue scenario in 2 mins 30 seconds
In a competition showcasing lifesaving skills, 25 electric cooperative lineworkers from across North Carolina raced against the clock – and their peers – for top honors at the 2025 Pole Top Rescue held at Nash Community College on Wednesday.
“Our lineworkers undergo intense training to ensure they’re ready to respond to any call, no matter the situation,” said Susan Flythe, CHEC general manager and EVP. “This competition puts their safety and rescue skills to the test while also recognizing the dedication it takes to maintain the lines that power the lives of electric cooperative members.”
During the competition, each lineworker executed a rescue scenario of retrieving an unconscious coworker from atop a utility pole. Each competitor, dressed in full climbing gear of up to 20 pounds, is judged on their swiftness and proficiency in radioing for help, scaling 20 feet up a utility pole, lowering a weighted mannequin and beginning CPR.
To advance to the state competition, each of the 25 competitors had to win a similar rescue event against their peers at their local electric cooperative. This year, CHEC’s own Brian Jones from completed the exercise with a time of 2:30.
“Every lineworker hopes to never have to use this method of rescue,” said Brian Jones. “That’s exactly why this event is so important – it brings competition into a scenario that we hope we’ll never need to use and gives us the confidence that we could do it quickly if something like this ever did happen.”
The biennial competition is hosted by North Carolina’s Electric Cooperatives with members of its training and safety team serving as judges. All North Carolina electric cooperative lineworkers must complete this same scenario in less than five minutes to maintain their certification to work on co-op power lines.
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