Picture
Mike Clifton

The story behind the picture from Mike Clifton

Back long ago prior to fiber or cell phones, substations would communicate with other substations and the dispatchers with land lines or communication dishes via RTU's that could send in alarms or for opening /closing devices. One of the jobs the substation department handled was aligning the dishes so a clear signal was transmitted and received. An employee from the communications group would pick up a set of walkie talkies from the local radio shack and meet us on site. His job was to check a gain meter while our job was adjusting the dishes vertically or horizontally and chatting with each other over the radios to get the best signal.

Prior to our ascents we would bow and pray to the tower and guy gods for a safe ascent and descent. Climbing toward the clouds we would have to fight off buzzards, raptors and other birds of prey and the deposits they left on their respective perch.

Communication employee last name was Little I believe, can't remember his first name, Mike Walker took this picture of Mike Clifton in 1990 at either Cleveland Bulk or Jacinto.


Photo No 2571 ... Submitted by Mike Clifton

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