Behind-the-scenes look at Upstate power crews [Video]

About 20 linemen from East River Electric traveled from South Dakota to help restore power in Pickens County. East River Electric worked under Blue Ridge Electric Cooperative to help restore the lines. “We left Wednesday morning, and took us three days to get here,” East River Electric Area Foreman Erik Traxler said. “Hauling these big trucks across the country takes a lot of work, a lot of breakdowns.”More Helene recovery: Will Greenville County Schools have to make up the days missed because of Helene?Traxler said the team is working 16 hours a day to help restore the power, doing whatever they can to fix the lines. “Yesterday afternoon, we were working on one spot where we had to do everything off the pole because we couldn’t get trucks in there, so we’re just going in on four wheelers and stuff and climbing,” Traxler said. East River is just a small …