This year we have had the unique opportunity to communicate with Emma's uncle, Robert. He is working as a carpenter in Antartica. The children wrote back and forth him to ask him about the many things one has to consider when working at the South Pole.
1. What specific job do you have?
I am a Carpenter – We Carpenters do all kinds of work here – everything from setting up tents for field camps to building crates for shipping equipment and experiments to adjusting doors on the station and even tearing down the old dome station. We have about 30 carpenters working here at the south pole this year – about 20 men and 10 women. That is similar to the station population in general – about 35% women, 65% men. We have women working in all of the trades – plumbers, electricians, engineers and as it works out this year most of our heavy equipment operators are women.
2. How long have you had this job?
This is my second season – I’ve been working in Antarctica for a total of 10 months now.
3. why did you choose this job?
I had a construction company in Florida – building homes, the market died so I was looking for something to do. I wanted to come to Antarctica to see it for my self and I like carpentry because you can see tangible results of your work
4. Do you get to go back to Antarctica?
I have the option to come back again next year if I want. I’m not sure if I do. I miss spending holidays with family and loved ones.
5. How do you go to the bathroom? (Their exact words!)
Good question. Here at the south pole station we have regular bathrooms so it is quite easy – the only problem we have where I live, in summer camp, is that the bathrooms are in a separate building, so, if you need to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night it means you have to get dressed and walk out into the cold (usually -20 F or less) to get to the bathroom. Most people don’t like to do that so they keep a coffee can in their sleeping stall to use in the night. Unfortunately we don’t have any sewage treatment plants here so the waste from the bathrooms is deposited deep down in to the ice. In about 70,000 years there will be some unpleasant icebergs falling into the ocean. Out at field camps we don’t have regular bathrooms – we have outhouses and all of the waste is collected in barrels, liquids in one and solids in another and is ultimately shipped back to the United States to be processed. It is not a very fun job to have to handle those barrels – especially if they break or spill. At the main station – McMurdo on Ross Island – they do have a sewage treatment plant and the treated water is released into the sea – after careful inspection to make sure it is clean.
6. What are your work hours?
We work 9 hour days – 6 days a week. I am currently on day shift which is 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. (we get one hour off for lunch) I used to work night shift which is 7:00 p.m. to 5:00 a.m. but since the sun is always up you cant tell the difference between night and day.
7. What kind of special clothes do you have to wear?
Many people here work inside the station and just wear jeans and t shirts for work but we carpenters are outside most of the time and we wear our ECW – Extreme Cold Weather gear that is issued to us by the National Science Foundation. Everyone has to wear their ECW on flights incase of an accident or if you get stuck out in the cold for an extended period. Our ECW consists of a down parka, insulated coveralls, thermal underwear, heavy gloves and glove liners, big rubber boots that we call bunny boots over wool socks – the boots are insulated with air and look like clown shoes. I usually don’t wear my down parka for work. I usually wear an insulted jacket over a fleece jacket. I also wear what we call a gator which is a cloth covering for your mouth and nose. Many people wear goggles but it is hard to keep them from fogging up so I don’t usually wear them. One of the hardest parts is making sure you don’t get too hot – if you get too hot and start sweating, then you are in trouble because it will freeze and you will get really cold. The hardest part for me is trying to keep my hands warm – especially when you are holding metal pieces or drills and saws. I go through lots of chemical hand warmers that I put in my gloves. We also have to watch out for frost bite – it can happen quite quickly when the wind is blowing and you don’t even notice it. We always try to work in teams and keep an eye on each other - as soon as we see any exposed skin turning solid white we make the person go inside and warm up immediately.
8. What kind of education do you need to get the kind of job you have?
You need a minimum of 5 years of experience as a carpenter or a 4 year college degree – usually the people who get hired first are those with experience and a degree. I have a degree in Geography from the University of Utah and about 13 years of construction experience.
