Troubleshooting in Paradise

How Johnny Hampton Saved the Day 

After 33 years with TVA and nearly two decades of retirement, Johnny Hampton still isn't one to sit on the sidelines.

While enjoying his retirement, Hampton was asked to come back for what was supposed to be a short stint at the Paradise Fossil Plant. He’s played a key role on site ever since.

"They called me and said they had a little something that would take about six weeks," Hampton said with a laugh. "That was in 2017, and I haven't left."

Hampton's TVA career began in the mid-1970s after a friend convinced him to apply for a job at Cumberland Fossil Plant. A trained machinist who completed a four-year apprenticeship before joining TVA, he quickly built a reputation for taking on challenges others avoided.

One of his earliest assignments involved climbing inside coal pulverizers to clean out accumulated coal dust and oil – a difficult and dirty task that few would take on. After weeks of volunteering without complaint, a supervisor noticed.

"He said, 'I've put you in one of those things every night for two weeks and you haven't said a word. How come?'" Hampton remembered. "I told him, 'As long as you're paying me and that's what you want me to do, I guess that's what I'll do.'"

That willingness to take on any challenge shaped the rest of his career.

Over the years, Hampton worked not only as a machinist but also as an instructor, planner, coordinator and foreman. He even returned to school to earn an associate degree in industrial electrical technology.

Along the way, he gained a deep understanding of plant operations and became the person others called when unusual problems emerged. That experience proved invaluable during ongoing demolition and transition work at Paradise.

One particular challenge involved sealing a large underground tunnel connected to the plant's cooling water system. Groundwater was leaking through construction joints nearly 40 feet below grade, and conventional solutions would have required sending workers into a confined space or pursuing costly alternatives.

For months, the team explored options.

"I'd never seen anything like it before," Hampton said. "But it was just a matter of looking at the problem, thinking through it and trying different ideas."

Eventually, Hampton designed a custom folding box that could be lowered through a narrow shaft. It featured spring-loaded wings that could expand into position, outside the box, and create a stable base for concrete to be poured and seal the cracks.

“I called it the winged wonder,” Hampton said.

To test the concept, he built a wooden prototype at home before sharing it with fabrication crews who made the final version out of steel.

When the team realized they had finally found a solution that worked, their excitement was palpable.

“I can still move pretty good, so I started dancing,” Hampton said.

For Hampton, problem-solving starts with curiosity and thinking creatively.

"People talk about thinking outside the box," he said. "I've never seen the inside of one."

Throughout his career, he spent countless hours studying manuals, reviewing drawings and seeking advice from experienced colleagues.

"I learned a long time ago that I don't have to know everything," he said. "I just have to know somebody who knows something about it."

To the new generation entering the workforce, Hampton offers this advice: be persistent, curious and willing to ask questions.

"If you don't know, there's nothing wrong with asking," he said. "Study it. Talk to people. Keep working at it. The solution will come."