2017 September Woodruff Electric Center Pages

woodruff electric cooperative edition

Annual Meeting report The 2017 Annual Meeting of Woodruff Electric was held on July 25th at the headquarters in Forrest City. This year’s director election took place between the District 3 incumbent, Chris Burrow, and challenger, Dennis Marcum.

Burrow received 692 votes over Marcum’s 683 votes. The election process was certified by the accounting firm of William M. Ripper, CPA Re-elected to the cooperative’s board was Chris Burrow representing District 3. Other members of the board are: J.A. Wampler, W. Wayne Beadles, J. Byron Ponder, J.N. Bickerstaff, Jerry Brown, Jack Caperton III, A.B. Thompson, Jr., and Joe Whittenton. Michael Swan is the cooperative’s chief executive officer.

The cooperative’s annual report emphasized the importance of serving our members, growing our communities, building leaders and being your local energy

partner. Approximately 500,000 electric cooperative members throughout Arkansas rely on Arkansas Electric Cooperative Corporation to provide dependable, safe and reasonably priced power. Woodruff Electric is one of 17 electric cooperatives in the state that collectively own AECC. Mr. Swan made note of Woodruff Electric’s financial stability in his address, while also mentioning the challenges facing the cooperative in the future.

Woodruff Electric is a member-owned electric utility.

The cooperative is headquartered in Forrest City and serves more than 19,000 homes, farms, businesses and industries in parts of Cross, Lee, Monroe, Phillips, Prairie, St. Francis, and Woodruff counties. District offices are located in Augusta, Moro, and Barton.

2017 Annual Meeting prize winners announced Each member who responded to the mail-in balloting was eligible for the prize drawing. The names of 12 winners were drawn, with the first three names drawn being the first, second and third-place winners. The first-place prize was a $200 gift card, which went to Ronnie J. Snow of Wynne. Second-place prize was a $150 card, won by Willie Mack Jones of Marianna. Third-place prize was a $125 gift card, won by Jackie D. Moore of McCrory.

The remaining prizes were $100 gift cards. Those winners were as follows: Buddy H. Busby of Wynne Carnathan Family Farms of Lexa Claude W. Thomas of Wynne Jeff D. Hollis of Forrest City John E. Threat Jr. of Forrest City

John Paul Wilson of Wynne Lucille Seals of Marvell R D N Farms Inc. of Moro Wilson Keith Morgan of Wynne

Mr. and Mrs. Willie Mack Jones of Marianna accept their $150 secondplace prize from Debbie Thomas, Consumer Accounts Clerk.

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Mr. and Mrs. Ronnie J. Snow of Wynne accept their $200 gift card for the first-place prize from Beth Vaccaro, Consumer Accounts Clerk.

Jackie D. Moore of McCrory accepts his $125 third-place prize from Teddy Little, District Manager.

Reap a safe harvest September is here and with it comes harvest time for many farmers. It can be an exciting and exhausting time, the culmination of a season of hard work. However, the rush to harvest can also yield tragic outcomes. Each year, dozens of farm workers are killed and hundreds are injured in accidents involving power lines and electrical equipment.

Farm workers should take these steps to ensure a safer harvest season: • Use care when raising augers or the bed of grain trucks around power lines.

• Use a spotter when operating large machinery near power lines. Do not let the spotter touch the machinery while it is being moved anywhere near power lines.

• As with any outdoor work, be careful not to raise any equipment such as ladders, poles or rods into power lines. Remember, non-metallic materials such as lumber, tree Farm workers should always keep equipment at least 10 feet away from power lines — above, below and to the side — a 360-degree rule.

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Holiday Closing The offices of Woodruff Electric will be closed on Monday, Sept. 4, for the Labor Day holiday.

3201 Highway 1 North, Forrest City, Arkansas 72335 (870) 633-2262 Outages: (888) 559-6400 www.woodruffelectric.coop

WOODRUFF ELECTRIC COOPERATIVE

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limbs, ropes and hay will conduct electricity depending on dampness, dust and dirt contamination.

• Never attempt to raise or move a power line to clear a path!

• Don’t use metal poles to break up bridged grain inside bins. Know where and how to shut off the power in an emergency.

• Use qualified electricians for work on drying equipment and other farm electrical systems.

Operators of farm equipment or vehicles must also know what to do if the vehicle comes in contact with a power line: Stay on the equipment, warn others to stay away and call 911. Do not get off the equipment until the utility crew says it is safe to do so.

If the power line is energized and you step outside, touching the vehicle and ground, your body becomes the path and electrocution is the result. Even if a power line has landed on the ground, the potential for the area nearby to be energized still exists. Stay inside the vehicle unless there’s fire or imminent risk of fire. If this is the case, jump off the equipment with your feet together, without touching the ground and vehicle at the same time. Then, still keeping your feet together, hop to safety as you leave the area.

Once you get away from the equipment, never attempt to get back on or even touch the equipment. Some electrocutions have occurred after the operator dismounts and, realizing nothing has happened, tries to get back on the equipment.

It is very important that all farm workers and seasonal employees are informed of electrical hazards and trained in proper procedures to avoid injury.