One day at my son's baseball practice, another parent asked me if it was normal for surveyors to leave equipment left on the side of the road for several nights in a row. I went by to check it out after practice and sure enough, it was a prism, tribract and tripod that had been there for several days. Since it was a Friday night, I picked up the backsight and left my business card tied to a wood lathe at the point. About the middle of the next week, I got a call from the surveyor/business owner who lives in the next county asking if I had seen his backsight and I explained to him what had happened. He was very happy to get it back - or so I thought. A couple of years later, I called him to inquire about some right of way information on a job he had done that was next to one I was doing at the time and I couldn't even get him to return my phone call.
There are always a few like that. Real nice when you are helping them, but otherwise, nothing.
I heard a story once where a party chief left a truck on-site. Evidently he forgot he drove to the site and hopped in the truck with one of the other county crews when he left the job site. THe lead surveyor happened to see it as he was heading out and didn't think much of it until he got back to the shop and all of the survey crews were there!
I have been very fortunate....
I have left prism pole, bipod, and prism still standing after the job was done, and gone back the next day or two and it was STILL THERE. I have also found equipment and left my business card tied to a stake and have returned "lost" equipment. Yes, we need to look out for each other, and be thankful for the honesty of the members of our profession.
I have been very fortunate....
All the crews got called into the supervisor's office one morning before anyone left for the day.
It seems a backsight was left out the night before and the supervisor found it on his way home.
After chewing out everybody for a while he let everyone go, but not before one of the party chiefs asked, "Did you check it before you picked it up?"
I have been very fortunate....
:good:
Lucky machete
> ... I told them to start looking for Schonstedts leaning up against fence posts. :whistle:
I found a schonstedt near a construction site several years ago. I contacted every firm in the area and no one claimed it...
Another time I passed a construction site every day for a week, and every day, there was an orange measuring wheel propped up next to the roadway. After a week, I picked it up, and again contacted the local firms. Again, no claim....
