"IS ANYONE INJURED? OK. AND YOUR NAME?"
[Garland Employees Working Long Hours Tackling the Winter Storm.]
[00:00:04]
MONDAY WE ANSWERED 2600 CALLS. "IF YOU DON'T FEEL COMFORTABLE SHUTTING IT OFF, I DON'T WANT YOU TO GET HURT OR ANYTHING." OR NORMAL CALL VOLUME IS BETWEEN 700-750 CALLS A DAY. EVERYONE'S BEEN WORKING HARD AND EVERYONE'S BEEN WORKING AS A TEAM.TRYING TOGETHER THINGS DONE SO THAT WE'RE NOT ALL OVERWHELMED AT ONCE."WE HAVE WARMING STATIONS" AND WE CAN SEND AN OFFICER OUT THERE TO PICK HER UP TO TAKE HER TO ONE OF THOSE." WE WERE GETTING MY POWER'S OUT. DO YOU KNOW WHEN MY POWER WILL BE ON? PEOPLE WERE CONCERNED BECAUSE AFTER THE POWER OUTAGES, THEY COULDN'T GET IN TOUCH WITH FAMILY MEMBERS DUE TO THE POWER OUTAGES SO WE WERE SENDING POLICE OFFICERS TO CHECK ON THEM. "WE'LL SEND THE FIRE DEPARTMENT OUT THERE TO CHECK IT OUT THOUGH, OK?" I CAME SUNDAY NIGHT. I BROUGHT FIVE DAYS WORTH OF CLOTHES.
THEY HAD COTS FOR US SO I GOT A COT AND SET IT UP AND I'VE BEEN HERE SINCE SUNDAY. I'VE NOT STEPPED OUTSIDE.
YOU'VE BEEN HERE TWO NIGHTS? SINCE TUESDAY NIGHT, SO YOU'RE MISSING THAT LITTLE GUY UP THERE THEN.
YES, ABSOLUTELY, THAT'S WHO I'M READY TO GET HOME TO AND HE'S READY TO SEE ME.
"CAN YOU FIND OUT IS THERE SOMEBODY OUT THERE WITH HIM?" LOT OF PEOPLE WORKING OVERTIME, EXTRA HOURS. WE'VE STAFFED ADDITIONAL PEOPLE IN HERE ON TOP OF WHAT WE NORMALLY HAVE.
EVERYBODY HAS BEEN GREAT. WE JUST PUSH THROUGH.
WE WORK TOGETHER AS A TEAM. "OK, WHAT'S GOING ON THERE?" AS SOON AS YOU FINISH WITH ONE THING, YOU JUMP ONTO THE NEXT AND IF SOMEBODY NEEDS HELP, YOU HELP THEM OUT.
"OK, WE'LL GET THE FIRE DEPARTMENT OVER THERE, OK?" (TRUCK PASSING) WE'RE THE FIRST LINE OF DEFENSE FOR THE MOTORISTS IN THE CITY.
OUR GOAL IS TO MAKE SURE THAT WE GET BRIDGES, WE GET INTERSECTIONS.
WE GET HILLY LOCATIONS, WE GET OUR MAJOR STREETS PASSABLE TO MAKE THEM AS SAFE AS WE POSSIBLY CAN FOR THE MOTORISTS.
I APPRECIATE THE WORK OUR GUYS DO. THEY'RE OUT WORKING IN BITTER COLD TONIGHT, AND THEY'RE GETTING TIME AWAY FROM THEIR FAMILIES, SO WE APPRECIATE, I APPRECIATE THE WORK THAT THEY'RE DOING ON BEHALF OF THE CITIZENS OF GARLAND.
(TRUCK PASSING) (WATER BUBBLING) WELL, WE HAVE A 16-INCH WATER MAIN BREAK.
(WATER GUSHING) SO RIGHT NOW, WE'RE JUST DIGGING IT UP.
WE FINALLY GOT THE WATER OFF. NOW THEY DIGGING IT UP TO EXPOSE THE PIPE.
(MOTOR RUNNING) SO THAT WAY WE CAN TO WHAT WE CAN REPAIR.
WE HAVE A LOT OF EMERGENCY CUTOFFS, BECAUSE WE HAVE A LOT OF PEOPLE THAT GOT BUSTED PIPE.
SO, WE'VE BEEN RUNNING AROUND ON 12-HOUR SHIFTS SINCE TUESDAY TURNING OFF WATER, BUT IT ALL STARTED OVER THE WEEKEND.
AND OUR STANDBY CREW WAS HANDLING IT, THEY GOT OVERWHELMED, SO WE HAD TO SPLIT THE WHOLE DEPARTMENT INTO TWO DIFFERENT SHIFTS, WORKING 12-HOURS EACH, FROM 7 TO 7 FROM 7 TO SEVEN BECAUSE WERE WERE GETTING SO MANY EMERGENCY CUTOFFS, SO MANY NO WATER CALLS, BECAUSE PEOPLE HAD FROZEN PIPES AND NOW THEY'RE STARTING TO BUST.
WE TAKE PRIDE IN WHAT WE DO SO YOU HAVE TO HAVE DEDICATION TO BE HERE ALL THE TIME.
I MEAN WE'VE GOT GUYS, THEY'RE DEDICATED TO BE HERE WHENEVER THE WORK NEEDS TO BE DONE.
THEY DON'T CRY ABOUT IT, THEY SHOW UP, THEY GET IT DONE. (WATER GUSHING) (BEEPING) WE HAVE RUN PROBABLY CLOSE TO 16 TO 20 GENERATOR SUPPORT RUNS DAILY, AND I DON'T MEAN DAILY, SOME OF THOSE ARE MULTIPLE RUNS A DAY.
ALL DURING THE NIGHT, ALL THROUGH THE NIGHT. SOME OF THESE WE RUN EVERY SIX HOURS, SOME WE RUN EVERY THREE OR FOUR HOURS, SO OUT OF THAT 20 GENERATORS, WE'RE GOING ALL THE TIME AROUND THE CLOCK.
IN ORDER TO HELP STEP UP, WE TOOK US A 5 TO 6 YARD DUMP TRUCK THAT YOU'D NORMALLY SEE DELIVERING SAND, PUT US A 600-GALLON MILITARY TANK IN THE BACK AND WE'VE BEEN SHUTTLING FUEL TO OUR LARGE LOCATIONS, THAT CAN CONSUME UP TO 100-GALLONS OF FUEL AND HOUR. (SPARKING NOISE) (BLOWER RUNNING) FIRE'S HAD THEIR HAND'S FULL.
THEIR CALLS HAVE DOUBLED AND TRIPLED. WHEN THEY DO, AND RUN THESE VEHICLES IN THIS TYPE OF CONDITION AND THIS TEMPERATURE, WE HAVE A LOT OF FREEZING UP OF THE PUMPS AND THE LINES AND IT'S REALLY BEEN CHALLENGE AND WE'RE TRYING TO WORK THROUGH SOME OF THEM AS WELL.
(BLOWER) OUR GUYS ARRIVED LAST SATURDAY. THIS IS THURSDAY, AND A MAJORITY OF THEM HAVEN'T WENT HOME, AND WE'VE BEEN HERE AROUND THE CLOCK, AND MY HAT'S OFF TO THEM. WE'VE GOT A GOOD GROUP.
WE KEEP IT RUNNING AROUND ALL THE CLOCK, ALL THE TIME, BUT IT'S REALLY A CHALLENGE IN THIS WEATHER HERE, AND ALSO MAKING SURE WE HAVE ADEQUATE PRODUCT IN HOUSE BECAUSE OUR FUEL IS ALL WE'RE GONNA HAVE UNTIL PROBABLY NEXT MONDAY, SO WE TRY ALL WE CAN LIKE EVERYBODY ELSE DOES. "IS ANYONE INJURED? OK." MY HAT'S OFF TO EVERYBODY HERE AT THE CITY.
THIS GROUP PULLS TOGETHER REAL WELL CITYWIDE, TO GET THE CITIZENS OF GARLAND THROUGH THESE EVENTS.
[00:05:04]
(MUSIC)* This transcript was compiled from uncorrected Closed Captioning.