OEU Earns Statewide Safety Award; Linemen Place in Florida Competition

OCALA, Fla. (March 16, 2026) - The Florida Municipal Electric Association (FMEA) recognized Ocala Electric Utility (OEU) with a 2025 Safety Award during the Florida Lineman Competition Awards Banquet held in Tallahassee this past weekend. The award highlights the utility's strong commitment to maintaining safe work practices while delivering reliable electric services to the Ocala community.

FMEA recognizes and rewards safe operations through its annual Safety Awards program. Utilities are placed into categories based on their total worker hours and recognized for maintaining the most incident-free safety records. The incidence rate used to evaluate utilities is based on the number of work-related reportable injuries or illnesses compared to total worker hours during 2025, as defined by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.

The award was presented as part of the annual Florida Lineman Competition, an event that brings together lineworkers from public power utilities across the state to demonstrate technical skill, safety procedures and teamwork in simulated real-world scenarios. The competition highlights the expertise required to safely maintain and restore electric infrastructure.

In addition to receiving the Safety Award, several OEU lineworkers earned individual honors during the competition.

• Even Vandeventer earned second place in the Mutual Aid event and third place in the Hurtman Rescue event
• Bryson Jones earned third place in the Fiberglass Guy Link Change Out event
• Kameron Matvejs earned third place in the Jack Jumper Fuse Replacement event

For more information, contact Ocala Electric Utility at 352-629-2489.

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About FMEA:
The Florida Municipal Electric Association (FMEA) represents the unified interests of 33 public power communities across the state, which provide electricity to 4 million of Florida's residential and business consumers.