Utility locators compete in international event near Springfield

(KY3)
Published: Dec. 13, 2019 at 4:11 PM CST
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About two thousand people are in Springfield right now, focused entirely on keeping you safe from something you can't see. It's part of a safety summit on underground utilities. Today, dozens of those attendees had some fun competing.

It's called the International Locate Rodeo, and the competitors don't wear cowboy hats. You'll usually recognize them by their brightly colored vests and the flags they leave behind. They don't have horses, but rely on their trusty radio detection locators.

They're the guys you call before you dig. John Spatafora, one of the competitors, works for the City of Columbia, supervising a team that locates underground water and electric lines.

"Locating is easy to learn, hard to master," says Spatafora. "So I can teach you in a day how do you use a locator, but it takes a lifetime to really master the art of locating."

He's one of about 65 competitors here today from across the country and even Canada.

"We take our measurements in metric; you guys have it in feet," says Mike Bellows, an attendee from Ontairo. "It just gives them a chance to see that they're part of a big picture and learn and develop new skills."

Locators are shooting for up to $3,500 in prize money. At each station, competitors have twelve minutes to pinpoint the electric, gas, water or telecommunication lines.

"It really takes a lot of training, a lot of on-the-job training, a lot of observation for folks to be able to do it well," says Derek Leffert, CEO of the Missouri Common Ground Alliance, which put on the safety summit and International Locate Rodeo. The competition happened on Springfield City Utilities training grounds.

Today, they aim for accuracy and speed. "Whenever I get close to where I need to take a measurement, that's when I slow down," says Spatafora.

Accuracy is key today, but crucial in their everyday jobs.

"The worst case scenario for a locator is if somebody hits something and gets hurt," Spatafora says. "That's our ultimate fear. We can fix the utilities; that's not a big deal. We do it to save other people's lives and keep them from getting injured."

This is the first year the event has been held in Missouri, and it will also be here in the Springfield area the next two years.