First two female ERT Lead Instructors certified at Plant Daniel
Safety and safe emergency responses are critical processes at Mississippi Power’s generating facilities. The employees that are members of a facility’s Emergency Response Team are trained to perform technical rescues from both elevated structures and confined spaces.
The Lead Instructor of an ERT helps guide the team to respond in a safe and efficient manner that both maintains rescuer safety and avoids further injury to the patient.
Plant Daniel Electrician Crissy Sykes and Senior Compliance Specialist Misty Fiello were recently certified as Lead Instructors of the ERT, making them the first women across Southern Company to achieve that status in more than 20 years.
“As a member of the ERT, I saw a need for instructors, mostly due to impending retirements of current instructors,” said Fiello. “I’m humbled to continue to be part of a great team with a tremendous commitment to safety and the health of their coworkers.”
“I have a knack for teaching and really enjoy it,” said Sykes. “I’ve been on the ERT for nearly a decade and have learned so much from the other members and instructors. This gives me the opportunity to return the knowledge I’ve gained to my team and our younger employees.”
To become a Lead Instructor on the ERT, Sykes and Fiello, along with Boiler & Turbine Operator Chris Sherman, were trained to teach emergency medical response through the American Red Cross. They were also trained to teach technical response by Southern Company lead instructors.
The final step of certification involved teaching new ERT members under the supervision of lead instructors.
“When we recruit new members, we teach both a 56-hour medical course and an 80-hour ropes rescue course,” said Sykes. “The medical course teaches basic and advanced first aid, CPR, and life-saving skills. The ropes course teaches how to properly rig our equipment to safely retrieve patients that are in locations that are not very accessible.”
Lead Instructors also give refresher classes to senior members of an ERT to sharpen their skills and keep them up-to-date with all safety or policy changes.
Sykes, Fiello, and Plant Hatch Senior Nuclear Security Officer Stephanie Herrel are the first three females to complete the required training to serve as a Technical Rescue Lead Instructor under the current program, which began in 2016. There has only been one other female lead instructor, and she has since retired, that dates back to the early 1990s.
“Male or female, these are elite employees,” said Fiello. “I am proud to have achieved this with Crissy and Chris, and to be joining Andrew Johnson as the instructors at Plant Daniel.”
“Anytime a woman accomplishes something in a male-dominated field, it gives that woman a sense of pride,” said Sykes. “I’m proud of the accomplishment, and I’m very proud to stand next to my peers as an equal.”
Now in its 97th year of operations, Mississippi Power, a subsidiary of Southern Company (NYSE: SO), produces safe, reliable and affordable energy for nearly 191,000 customers in 23 southeast Mississippi counties. Mississippi Power recently was a recipient of the Community Partner Impact Award from the Center for Energy Workforce Development for its innovative and ongoing efforts to build a diverse workforce. With nearly 160 megawatts of approved solar energy capacity, Mississippi Power is the largest partner in providing renewable energy in the state of Mississippi. Visit our websites at mississippipower.com and mississippipowernews.com, like us on Facebook, and follow us on Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, and YouTube.
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