A heartfelt congrats to IBEW 1245 member Nick Rains, winner of the IBEW International Photo Contest! Brother Rains beat out submissions from dozens of other locals to come out on top in the annual contest.
According to the IBEW International website:
To get a picture of just how much snow fell on Lake Tahoe in January 2017 you’d need NBA legend Shaquille O’Neal; and then another to stand on his shoulders; and one more. Two African elephants stacked one atop the other would come close.
Vacaville, Calif., Local 1245 member Nicholas Rains and three of his IBEW brothers standing on one another’s heads would still have been buried three feet from view.
From New Year’s Day to February 1, more than 25 feet of crystal mountain powder fell out of the sky, burying everything, including the electrical grid connecting South Lake Tahoe’s 21,000 residents to the rest of the world.
“The storm was so violent,” Rains said. “The trees were so snow-loaded, it was so cold out, your nose was purple, any exposed skin was hurting so bad.”
But, he said, this is why being a lineman is the best job in the Brotherhood.
“Everyone made the best of it,” he said. “We were really loving our job.”
Rains image of that moment created an avalanche of support that won him the 20th Annual IBEW Photo Contest.
This same photo was also selected as the winning image for the IBEW 1245 photo contest back in the summer of 2017.
Additionally, a special shout-out to IBEW 1245 member Jordan Skarda, who nabbed an honorable mention in this year’s contest.
The first Honorable Mention captures the end of the day and 30-hour shift that started long before that day began. Vacaville, Calif., Local 1245 members Jordan Skarda, KC Nancolas and Kevin Claggett were on their final job, repairing an open jumper on a pole in the foothills near Cayucos, Calif. As the sun went down and the helicopter lifted off, Skarda scampered up a hill to try and take it all in. The California sun – peeking between the fog and the clouds setting Whale Rock Reservoir aglow – has a way of bewitching people.
Brother Skarda also won the IBEW 1245 quarterly photo contest in January of 2018.
Way to make us proud, brothers!
View all the winners here.