Something to put everything into perpective

[miguell2]

We are very concentrated on speed of the network and speed of NV deployments but never really think of the people that are actually climbing to the towers and actually doing these upgrades. There was just a story that aired today on PBS that you might find and interesting view. I wonder what you guys think of it.

 

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/cell-tower-deaths/

[aerxx]

A friend of mine who has a few towers and provides wireless broadband to farmers in my community, shared this with me this evening. Amazing what we don't think about when we make a cell phone call....

[nova46]

Just watched the whole thing. That brings up some great points. I've always wondered how tower maintenance gets done cause I never see towers being worked on, but I knew it couldn't be an easy job. Definitely very dangerous and apparently very underpaid. I would accept no less than $20 an hour to do a job like that.

 

Everyone wants Sprint to complete this whole NV thing in a matter of no time but most people don't realize the extreme amount of work and money it takes. I give props to these guys and my heart goes out to those who have lost their lives doing it.

[pii100]

I almost got NATE/ATC certified back when I was working for a company doing back haul as finding good climbers is hard. Glad I didn't in hindsight. We never had a fatality but there were a few close calls.

[Thomas L.]

It is and has been the most dangerous job in America I believe for at least the last few years. If you think about all of the things those guys (and gals) have to do, and how often (think of all the towers just in your area), it's actually not as much of a surprise. The other thing I think people forget is that they're working with big honkin' pieces of equipment - I know I'm always blown away when I see the antennas, etc, up close because I'm used to seeing them way up on the tower where they somehow look much more manageable.

[GregSmoov]

I was about to post this, just finished watching it online.

It's ultimately up to the technician to follow safety procedures but if he stands up to his/her foreman and say something isn't safe they will probably just get rid of him and replace him with someone who will do it.

 

OSHA seems to only go after larger companies with deep pockets they can levy large fines on. The carriers distance themselves from the sub contractors they hire so they cannot be held responsible for safety violations.

I work for a major north east utility and safety is paramount. Technicians are suspended if caught not following safety procedures. OSHA is always inspecting our job sites to make sure we are following safety procedures.

[digiblur]

I climbed many towers/derricks offshore, inland marsh, and on land. I really enjoyed it except for the times things were iced over which was rare in my area. Nothing like climbing up a tower over 100 miles off the coast, you could see for miles. I would never ever free climb though. That's absolutely insane to do that as I've fallen and seen people fall before due to old ladders, posts, cable trays, etc. All of them including myself were tied off though with no injuries due to the fall.

[GregSmoov]

I don't understand how these guys can take such grave risk with their lives.

[2fastkuztoms]

Its not an easy job and dangerous one, they have a ton of heart doing it... take a look a this guys...

 

[Sandman]

Just watched the video and all I can do is shake my head. I have been rock climbing for a few years and when I saw those guys free climbing (we call it free solo), I was like you gotta be crazy to do that. No amount of money is worth compromising your safety because you can't spend something if you are dead. These type of accidents could be minimized immensely if people were properly trained, have proper climbing and safety equipment and the climbing equipment is replaced and inspected regularly. The pay that these subcontractors get is just ridiculously low and that needs to change. If for instance that one subcontractor near the end couldn't even replace his equipment on a regular basis, then something is very wrong.

 

Anyway if one of those guys offered me that kind of pay and that kind of substandard equipment, they would get the middle finger. That and I don't climb anything unless there is redundancy in the system.

 

Tragic that those guys died...

 

 

@2fastkustoms

 

Ridiculous the amount of free climbing those guys had to do to get up there. That and that 'biner was way to big to be clipped on one of those climbing studs. Even if it did catch your fall, it could easily slip off the stud it was attached to. It looks like to me there are serious flaws built into these towers for climbing and maintenance work.

[Deval]

I went up to the roof of my building to take a look at a microwave relay we had run, and almost peed my pants. Imagine being on the roof of a 55 story building, with wind whipping around you, air feeling different, and the view of NYC all around you, with no safety fence or anything.

[Sandman]

I went up to the roof of my building to take a look at a microwave relay we had run, and almost peed my pants. Imagine being on the roof of a 55 story building, with wind whipping around you, air feeling different, and the view of NYC all around you, with no safety fence or anything.

 

Dan Osman climbing 400+ ft. in under 5 minutes. The guy is dead but he didn't die from free solo climbs. He died from jumping off cliffs and having a dynamic rope arrest his fall. It only takes that one time that rock breaks away from you or that rope snaps and it is bye bye.

 

[Deval]

*shudders*

 

Wow

[miguell2]

I don't understand how these guys can take such grave risk with there lives.

 

Its a combination of financial need, specially on how hard it is to find decent work nowadays for young and inexperienced kids; and how naive those kids are thinking they can climb safely without safety harness.

 

If you tell a kid who doesnt know better to climb a tower freestyle he will do it for a paycheck...

[Odell]

It's not hard to understand how these guys do it. When you combine time pressure from an employer with the fearlessness and feeling of invulnerability of some then you can see it. I worked in the printing industry for years and you would see older guys missing fingers from bypassing safety measures on cutting and printing machines in order to get something done faster. Machine manufacturers go through design hoops to create safety measures that cannot be bypassed just to prevent this from happening.

 

If it takes a guy 30 or more extra minutes to climb a tower because he has to unhook/tie-off every few feet and his employer is pressuring him to get more done in a given day where do you think he is going to try to cut time? The only way this changes is if guys are at risk of losing their jobs if they ignore safety measures. The only way that happens is if corporations face costs when their employees ignore safety measure.

 

At least the tower guys are getting paid...

 

http://youtu.be/JEtc5JPmyUM

[centralcityguy]

I'm Patient and willing to wait to allow for saved lives. These guys are not getting paid enough! The carries can and should be paying more for the men actually doing the work. I work around machines and robots in a factory and safety is always first. I could get fired same day for not following procedure. I also have pressure to get things up and running but we can always refuse to complete a task if we feel in anyway it is unsafe.

 

Please guys be safe and voice these concerns to management on all levels.

[gopher_otis]

Heights scare the crap out of me, but I'd climb towers every day for a paycheck.

[pyroscott]

You know what else is obscenely dangerous, and pays very little? Police, firefighters and the military. The risk of climbing a cell tower can be mitigated with proper equipment. I don't really know why it isn't used more.

 

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2

[gr8nuguy]

holy crap @ the video...i couldnt do that, even if my life depended on it..wow..

[gangrene]

You know what else is obscenely dangerous, and pays very little? Police, firefighters and the military. The risk of climbing a cell tower can be mitigated with proper equipment. I don't really know why it isn't used more.

 

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2

 

 

That's not true everywhere.

 

Average police pay tops $80,000 in NY, NJ and California with detectives earning well over $100,000. The benefit packages and pensions that these guys get would blow your mind.

 

There's a reason certain states have massive budget deficits and much higher taxes than others.

[JeffDTD]

Maybe im a cold hearted bastard, but for $10-$11 an hour, theres just no way id be free climbing. Ive no pity for folks who forego safety training theyve had and free climb. If the payout was irrationally high, then it would be atleast slightly more rationable to bend the rules. To be fair, these death rates should be compared to deaths in the construction and maintenance industries, etc.

 

Im just not shocked.

[centermedic]

That's not true everywhere.

 

Average police pay tops $80,000 in NY, NJ and California with detectives earning well over $100,000. The benefit packages and pensions that these guys get would blow your mind.

 

There's a reason certain states have massive budget deficits and much higher taxes than others.

Not accurate. The starting pay in NYC is about 24K a year with a regular police officer topping out at about 50K. There are some other jurisdictions that make a lot of money though like PAPD, Nassau Police and Suffolk Police.

[Sandman]

The risk of climbing a cell tower can be mitigated with proper equipment. I don't really know why it isn't used more.

 

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2

 

Near the end of the video, there is a subcontractor who points out that they can't even afford new equipment or even tires for his truck. These guys need to be paid more and given more time to do maintenance on those towers. That alone I think would solve a lot of safety issues. I agree with you, with the proper equipment and use there of, a lot of these accidents could be prevented.

[gangrene]

Not accurate. The starting pay in NYC is about 24K a year with a regular police officer topping out at about 50K. There are some other jurisdictions that make a lot of money though like PAPD, Nassau Police and Suffolk Police.

 

NYPD starting salary is 46 and after 5.5 years the average salary is 78

 

And I was giving an average for the state, not talking about NYC specifically.

 

Everything I said was accurate, your info is out of date.

[centermedic]

NYPD starting salary is 44.6 and after 5.5 years the average salary is 76.

 

And I was giving an average for the state, not talking about NYC specifically.

 

Everything I said was accurate, your info is out of date

Whoa! When did that happen? All I can say is I stand corrected and they deserve the pay!

http://www.nypdrecruit.com/benefits-salary/overview