Climbing to the Top: Featuring Apprentice Benjamin Kent of Pedernales Electric Cooperative

Climbing to the Top: Featuring Apprentice Benjamin Kent of Pedernales Electric Cooperative

T&D World loves to put apprentices in the spotlight in its Faces of the Future department. For this episode of the Line Life Podcast, we are featuring the 2028 Apprentice of the Year for Pedernales Electric Cooperative (PEC) in Texas. Benjamin Kent of PEC’s Canyon Lake district was honored for his dedication and commitment to ex›cellence on and off the job. Kent was selected for his willingness to learn and embrace all aspects of the job, and for consistently going above and beyond to help his colleagues, members, and community.   If you have an apprentice you would like for us to feature in T&D World or on the Line Life Podcast, please email [afischbach@endeavorb2b.com]Amy Fischbach. We'd love to hear from you. Also, look for Part 2 of this series, which will feature Ben's trainer, Josh Hanawalt, a journeyman lineworker at PEC. He will share more about his journey in the line trade, the Apprentice of the Year program and his training center.

ICYMI: Hurricanes Helene and Milton: One Year Later

In this ICYMI episode for the Line Life Podcast, Duke Energy lineworkers who responded to Hurricanes Helene and Milton share their stories about the long shifts, logistical challenges, and the teamwork that restored power and hope to devastated communities. The episode also shares practical hurricane-response best practices, rapid-restoration achievements, and how local communities and crews supported one another during recovery. To read the story, which appeared in the January 2026 issue of T&D World magazine right after the one-year anniversary of the hurricanes, visit the website [https://www.tdworld.com/disaster-response/article/55336187/hurricanes-helene-and-milton-one-year-later].  Also, if your line crew has just finished a storm restoration and wants to share your story, please email [afischbach@endeavorb2b.com]Amy Fischbach, host of the Line Life Podcast and Head of Content for T&D World, with high-resolution photos of the damage and restoration. We look forward to hearing from you and sharing your best practices for storm restoration with our readers, subscribers and Line Life Podcast listeners.

America's Favorite Lineman: Behind the Scenes with Austin Carr from Lakeland Electric

Austin Carr, a lineworker for Lakeland Electric, said he has access to some of the best training programs available. He quickly discovered, however, that others in the line trade are not as fortunate. To share his knowledge and experiences with other lineworkers, he started posting videos on TikTok and became "America's Favorite Lineman [https://www.tiktok.com/@americasfavoritelineman]." He has published hundreds of episodes so far and enjoys teaching others about best practices in the line trade on TikTok [https://www.tiktok.com/@americasfavoritelineman], where he has more than 115,000 followers and 1.8 million likes.  During this Line Life Podcast episode, he talks about staying safe and hydrated in hot and humid conditions in Florida, dealing with water snakes and alligators and being on call 24/7. He also shares how he balances his work and family life as a married dad of two young daughters. He gave a shout-out to his wife and other line wives for all they do to support lineworkers on the line. For more information about Austin and to view his training videos, subscribe to his TikTok channel [https://www.tiktok.com/@americasfavoritelineman] or follow him on Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/americasfavoritelineman/] or Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61561863222541].  If you know of a lineworker we should put in the spotlight, please email Amy Fischbach, Head of Content for T&D World and host of the Line Life Podcast [http://linelife.podbean.com]. Thanks for listening!

ICYMI: Safeguarding Human Flight Amid Drone Expansion

As lineworkers and pilots work "inside the wires" from helicopters, drones could soon be a part of this shielded airspace. Mike Starner of the National Electrical Contractors Association (NECA) and Heather Moran of Level Ascent Solutions explored the Federal Aviation Administration's proposed rules regulating the use of drones.  This audio story, authored by Mike Starner of the National Electrical Contractors Association (NECA) and Heather Moran of Level Ascent Solutions, was featured in the January 2026 issue of T&D World magazine. Their story highlights safety concerns around rights-of-way and the need for rapid communication and coordination. It also shares how technologies can help if implemented with input from pilots, drone operators and utility safety professionals. Listeners will hear why preserving human judgment and teamwork is essential as drone inspections and Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) operations expand. It will also focus on why collaboration, standardized protocols and training are critical to safely modernize inspections above the power line. For more information, read the article [https://www.tdworld.com/electric-utility-operations/article/55336197/safeguarding-human-flight-amid-drone-expansion]on the T&D World website.

Live from Chicago: Spotlight on Technology at the 2026 IEEE PES T&D

Join us for a roundup from the IEEE PES T&D 2026 conference in Chicago, featuring interviews with exhibitors about the rise of 765 kV transmission, the looming matting shortage for large build-outs and the growing power demand from data centers. Vendors and technology providers discuss solutions for improving grid reliability and resilience. Hear conversations with Hubbell, Shemar, Sterling Site Access Solutions, Smart Power and Ayr Energy about local manufacturing, automated mat production, power-flow technologies and upcoming projects representing gigawatts of new capacity. For more coverage and videos, visit www.tdworld.com [https://www.tdworld.com/ieee-pes-show-update] and tune into our sister podcast, T&D World Live. You can also listen to our latest episode in our ICYMI series, "Powering Reliability: Inside the 2026 IEEE PES T&D Show [https://www.podbean.com/ew/pb-ynv9h-1abbc3b]" on Podbean [http://linelife.podbean.com] or in your favorite podcasting app. Thanks for listening!