Brian Flake: FEARLESS
by Tobi Dummett-Leget, Staff Writer

Fearless. If someone asked me to describe Brian Flake in one word, the word I would choose is fearless. Every time I drive past the field of poles the powerline students climb, that from my perspective are 50,000 feet in the air, I have to admire their dedication. I have a theory that to become a powerlineman you have to have a powerline gene in your DNA. Brian is a student in the powerline program at Northwest Iowa Community College, which happens to be the same college where his father earned his degree in powerline over thirty years ago. Didn't I tell you it is in the genes?

I picked Brian's brain trying to figure out what the attraction is in being a powerlineman. People who are not involved in powerline would tell you that the people who become powerlineman are just in it for the money, they are wrong. If you don't believe me, take a moment and talk with someone who is involved in powerline. I asked Brian his favorite aspect of the powerline program, he said there wasn't just one area, he liked the entire program.

I wanted to have some photographs taken of Brian "in the field" and Aaron Dvorak provided me with an opportunity to ride around the powerline fields and introduced me to all the powerline program has to offer. Aaron, who is also a NCC graduate, has been a powerline instructor at the college for eight years. I asked Aaron if he enjoyed being an instructor to which he replied that he certainly did. I then asked if he missed being in the field, his response to this question utterly floored me. Without a moment's hesitation he heartily replied, "Oh yeah." Dumbfounded I said the first thing that came to my mind, "You miss climbing up a pole full of electricity in the snow and ice with temperatures of seventy-five below zero?" Aaron confirmed that he sure did. I then turned to see Brian on top of a pole that was swaying in the wind and commented on how the pole really seemed to be swaying. Aaron nonchalantly commented that it isn't so bad if the pole has wires connected to it, the poles that don't have wires connected to them and the taller poles really allow for more sway. As I watched the pole Brian was perched atop sway, I couldn't help but ask Aaron yet another brilliant question, "Doesn't it concern you that you are up in the air on a swaying pole?" Aaron just shrugged and said, "You are aware of it."

The funny thing is that the more you are around the powerlineman and drink in their enthusiasm for their trade the more it rubs off on you. I asked Mandy Groth if she would accompany me to take pictures of Brian as he climbed the poles. Before Mandy would answer my question, she first told me emphatically that she would not climb on top of a pole to get a picture of Brian. Mandy knows me too well. After assuring her that I would not ask her to climb a pole, she agreed to accompany me on our tour and would be glad to take pictures. After touring the powerline grounds with Aaron and feeling his enthusiasm for the program I jokingly suggested to Mandy that she could get some great shots of Brian on the pole if she would climb up the pole next to him, this time she actually paused for a moment to consider my suggestion before saying no.

Later I sat down with Brian and talked about the tour we had taken and asked him what he thought of the NCC powerline program. Brian responded by saying that the program at NCC is where you want to go if you want to get a powerline job. NCC offers the best equipment, everything is state of the art, the program is one of the best in the country, and the instructors are great.

Originally, from Columbus Junction, Iowa, Brian, while attending NCC, resides in Sanborn, Iowa. Brian is a member of both the Sanborn Fire Department and the Sanborn Ambulance Team. I asked Brian when he first became involved in the emergency medical services field. At the age of fourteen, Brian joined an exploratory program through his local high school, and became active in the local ambulance team. It was around this same time that Brian joined the volunteer fire department. Joining the fire department was a natural choice, Brian's stepfather is a fire chief, and there are numerous family members, uncles and cousins, who are all a part of the fire department.

I asked Brian if he would share some of his most memorable moments he has experienced while on the ambulance team. There were two, which stuck out in Brian's mind. The first he said was when he helped deliver a baby boy. The parents thought that they were going to have a girl, and when the baby turned out to be a boy, they named him Brian. I thought this was so cool and said to Brian, "Wasn't it beautiful to bring life into the world?" The look Brian gave me was one of "what a girl" as he earnestly replied, "Not really." This moment of laughter was followed by a more sobering moment. Brian then went on to tell me about a car accident he had responded to with the ambulance team back home. A grandfather, grandmother, and their ten-year-old granddaughter were driving home traveling around sixty miles per hour when they struck a deer. The deer came through the windshield and after trying for several yards to control the car the seventy-year-old man lost control of the vehicle and it crashed into a ditch.

The ten-year-old graddaughter had been asleep in the back of the car when the accident occurred. Brian was the first to reach the little girl and as I listened to his words, I could visualize the horror this little girl must have faced upon awakening. The grandfather and grandmother were both unconscious and bloody in the front seat.

Brian said that the little girl had cuts and blood all over her, but she had been asleep and was wearing her seat belt, which probably saved her life. Brian was the first to reach the little girl and used his pocketknife to cut her seat belt off. Brian said that the little girl wrapped her arms and legs around him and would not let go. Brian was the only one the little girl would respond to and he even rode with her to the hospital. The little girl and her grandmother both survived the accident, unfortunately, the grandfather's injuries were too great and he passed away before reaching the hospital. "It's what makes you keep going" Brian mused. "You deliver a baby one week, and the next week you lose someone, but I will never forget that little girl, and I guess that is why you keep doing it." Brian said that no matter where he lives he wants to stay active in both the fire department and the ambulance team.

I commented to Brian that all of the areas of work he has chosen are in the area of service to people. Working with people is what Brian said he likes best. This attitude is not only reflected in the career choices he has made, it is also reflected in the comments I received from those who work with Brian. When asked how they would describe him comments of friendly, hard working, a good worker, dedicated, and a really sweet young man, these were all observations and comments made by those who know and work with Brian used to desribe him. Did I mention he was fearless?