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Special to the Sun
NV Energy employee Herbie Goforth III died after a fall of almost 100 feet from a tower shortly after achieving his goal of becoming a journeyman lineman.
Sunday, Sept. 30, 2012 | 12:35 p.m.
Herbie Goforth III stands with his fiancee, Judy Greene.
Herbert Goforth Jr. was eating lunch in the cafeteria at NV Energy on Tuesday when he locked eyes with a man from the safety department. He didn’t need to hear the words to know something had happened to his son Herbie Goforth III.
The day before, Goforth III — a newly anointed journeyman lineman — told his father that he was to learn a new technique climbing a nearly 100-foot tower and work on a 500-kilovolt energy line Tuesday. Goforth Jr., an executive at NV Energy, knew this was no ordinary job. A man had died working at a similar line years ago. It made him so nervous that he called his son a second time to warn him to be careful.
The man from the safety department confirmed Goforth Jr.’s worst fears. Goforth III had fallen nearly 100 feet from the tower and died. He had just achieved his goal of becoming a journeyman lineman. He was supposed to turn 30 the next day, be married Oct. 6 and go to the Bahamas for his honeymoon.
Instead, his family had to plan his funeral.
“It was just a tragedy of all the things that he had worked to accomplish, the man he had become,” Goforth Jr. said. “For him to lose his life like that — it was just the worst thing a parent could ever experience.”
Goforth Jr. knows there would’ve been no persuading his son not to go that day. Goforth III, a Cimarron High School and UNLV graduate, considered being a journeyman lineman his calling.
“People said they never saw him when wasn’t smiling,” Goforth Jr. said. “He loved working for NV Energy. He loved working as a lineman.”
It takes five years and about 10,000 hours of work as an apprentice lineman and countless hours studying after work to become a journeyman. It’s a grueling job that takes a lot of skill to climb poles and work with high-voltage equipment. Not everyone has the aptitude to be a lineman.
Goforth Jr. said his son was told that he might not become one. Although most linemen are big, Goforth III weighed only 140 pounds. People initially criticized him, saying he was too small and didn’t have the fortitude to do the job.
He learned his techniques at Northwest Lineman College in Oroville, Calif. He studied on his days off as an apprentice, and he soon developed the thick neck and sturdy upper body of a lineman. By the end of his training, he could tie 20 knots in the air as easy as someone brushes his teeth.
He had dreams of becoming a troubleshooter, the first person on the scene when there is a power failure.
Goforth Jr. said any co-worker would say Goforth III was “an excellent climber, very knowledgeable and good at anything. Not just kind of good ... really good.”
Goforth III’s parents and fiancee have barely slept since he died, and they spent what would have been his 30th birthday making funeral arrangements. They have received hundreds of emails from people who knew Goforth III or worked with him.
But what has stuck with Goforth Jr. the most is a picture he saw on the Nevada journeyman lineman group page on Facebook. A line of boom trucks parked at the lineman service center had their booms raised as high as they can go. It is called the “flying of the booms.”
It was a tribute to a fallen lineman.
It was for Herbie Goforth III.
We..the public often times rail against NV Energy and their never ending rate increases, but the death of one of their workers kind of hits home a little. It puts a face of a working man on what most of us take for granted...power. We expect a light to turn on when we flip a switch, the TV to turn on when we push the remote control and the microwave to work to heat a out food. I see the face of a man who gave his life to make sure all that would continue to happen. I see a son following in his father's footsteps, carrying on a tradition, and now that ends for them. While the family grieves for their loss...the rest of us still expect all those things to happen that we need eletricity for. What will we carry away from this tragedy? Most of us will read this story in passing and think..."Prayers for the family", but I see co-workers without a friend, a fiance without a husband, a mother without her son, and a father without his namesake. The father is the one who will have to return day after day to work, with the company and its business of what they do as a constant reminder of the loss of his son. I for one will look at the high transmission towers with a little more awe and respect, and wonder...could I ever have the courage to do what so few can do, but yet so many rely on to make our lives what they are? May he Rest in Peace.
Tragic. Beyond tragic. Hopefully they find out how this occurred to prevent future tragedies like this.
Accidents don't have to happen. Something went wrong. What?
Herbie was a personal friend, about to be married to another dear friend, Judy Greene. My wife Elizabeth and I are heartbroken and deeply saddened by this tragedy. We were looking forward to their wedding and to sharing in their happiness together. Please pray that God bless this family and help them through this difficult time.
Gerard, News3
Hope they find out what happened. Have to wonder why they would start a new climbing Technic when they seem to have been pretty safe, doesn't sound right. Poor guy...
People need to remember that real American heroes die nearly every day working to provide us basic services that too many people take for granted.
Nicely written article. This is how it should be. Tell the story of the PERSON and celebrate who he was, an amazing son, friend and soooo much more. To those who had the privilege of knowing him can atest to this, Herbie was as good as they come. Always happy and smiling, no negativity. The world lost a good one, and it just isnt fair. I do know, however, he loved what he did and it made him so proud to do his job. My heart aches for his parents and fiancee. No one will ever be able to fill the void created by this loss.
Heartfelt condolences to the Goforth Family..
Retired member local 401
We wish to thank the writer of this article for taking the time to write not about a tragic accident that took the life of a very special person, but to write about the person himself. Too often we read of tragedies involving young people, but we are left wondering about the person involved. This article tells what we who know Herbie have known all along - that Herbie was a wonderful, caring young man that loved his job. He was passionate about it and thrived at it. He considered other less dangerous occupations, but once he started attending the lineman's academy in northern California, he was hooked. He excelled and gave everything he had in doing the best he could. He will be greatly missed by all who knew him. God must have needed another angel, and when he chose Herbie, he chose the best. We will miss you always.
@ tommyguns...
"People need to remember that real American heroes die nearly every day working to provide us basic services that too many people take for granted."
Amen to that.
Condolences to family & friends of Herbie.
Brian Nordli;
Well done.
What was going on at CESewell Elementary School. Yesterday around 3pm? Lots of law enforcement all over the school. Was Obama visiting the school?