Workers rise to the heat wave challenge
Fang and his colleagues climbed the tower, removed the nest and installed a bird repeller. Power transmission was uninterrupted during the entire process.
"It took about one hour from discovering the nest to getting all the work done, whereas in the past, it could take half a day," Fang said, adding that work in remote rural areas should be carried out by at least two people due to personal safety concerns.
Fang said that four years ago, summer was also extremely hot. "To ensure safety of the power supply, I accompanied more-experienced colleagues to the mountains for patrols over many days, despite the heat," he said.
The power company then started to deploy drones to ease some of the pressure on workers, and Fang quickly emerged as a skillful drone pilot.
As electricity facilities are commonly built in mountainous and rural areas, technicians working in such locations must always carry a medical kit containing pills to treat heatstroke and snakebite.
Working for State Grid's Yixian branch since 2018, Fang was recently appointed a line chief responsible for power services in some areas of the county.
Yixian boasts numerous tourism attractions, such as Xidi and Hongcun villages－jointly designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
In addition to patrolling and repairing high-voltage transmission lines, the technicians take shifts for week-long household services duty.
Fang said, "There will be a light show on Friday night in Xidi, but we will not be able to spare a single minute to enjoy it, as we must stay highly alert for any potential electrical failures."
