It's been a lot of hours and little sleep getting on board here in Haiti. The crews are good but need seasoning. One minute I am amazed at the things they know and the next minute they do something that shows they still have a long way to go. Rigging and tool care are an issue. I've got to teach splices and knots as well as how to clean, wax and store hot sticks.
Bucket work is another issue. Three buckets that range from an old Pitman Pelican, a Terex with no outriggers and an Altec with a material handler. None have harnesses or rescue gear. I've got it on order at this point but the show must go on.
What we have here is an experiment. Two villages we electrified that have meters and pay thier bills... About 500 customers.. And three towns we recently took over from the national power company. There were a few meters installed and the rest of the "customers" hooked up using pieces and parts of #12 copper. One wire to a hot leg and another to a ground rod (read rebar) for a neutral. Some of the services a over 1000' of #12 serving 40 to 70 clients. Our task.... To normalize the customer base by expanding the secondary grid where possible, and installing meters. We estimate about 7000 customers that require meters and service drops. This is going to be a fun challenge to do while training them to actually pay for electricity.... Wish me luck!
rwd