Cory Roberts joined Southern California Edison’s civil maintenance crew in Big Creek 15 years ago because he wanted to handle heavy machinery. He soon discovered the job also comes with unusual demands, like dangling from a rope off a 200-foot-tall dam to make fixes.

“I’ve always had a fear of heights, and the only thing that overrides it is a sense of responsibility to my crew and to the public’s safety,” said Roberts, the foreman of SCE’s Hydro Maintenance crew. “I need to be able to do the same things that I’m asking my crew to do. This ropework is how we maintain hydroelectric structures and equipment that power the surrounding communities.”

The team’s responsibilities stretch across the Big Creek Hydroelectric Project, SCE’s system of nine powerhouses, 23 generating units, six reservoirs and 27 dams. Together, the facilities can generate 1,000 megawatts of clean energy, enough to power over half a million homes. The reservoirs also support recreation for thousands of visitors each year.

Roberts’ crew helps make sure the whole system runs safely. They maintain roads leading to powerhouses, plow snow across backcountry passes, clear rockfall, repair concrete and help keep recreation areas safe. When the crew can’t reach part of a dam that needs inspection or repair from the ground, they scale it with ropes.

“With ropes, we can access hard-to-reach parts of the dam to make touch-ups and remove vegetation like moss,” said Roberts. “It gives us a clearer view of the dam’s surface so we can spot changes and check on how the structure is doing over time.”

They provide any measurements and observations to SCE’s team of dam safety engineers, who review and determine whether, when and what kind of follow-up work is needed.

“We want to continue providing reliable, clean energy and safe access to Big Creek’s recreational sites,” said Douglas Raigosa, an SCE engineer in the Dam and Public Safety Department. “The civil crew helps make sure we can do that by getting an up close, detailed look at the dams.”

To stay sharp on their skills, Roberts and his crew complete a weeklong rope access refresher every two years at Shaver Lake Dam. They practice descending, climbing and rescuing an injured or unconscious coworker. Before anyone goes over the edge, team members check knots, harnesses and other equipment, building layers of protection into every task.

Mechanics and electricians who work on valves and other equipment below dams also take the training. During the course, the civil crew learns how to serve as a safety team for those headed underground to do inspections or repairs. They use a tripod system to lower people into confined spaces like tunnels and keep it ready at the opening in case someone gets injured and needs to be lifted out.

“You’re putting your lives in each other’s hands,” Roberts said. “It’s all about keeping each other safe, double-checking each other and being your brother’s keeper.”

For more on SCE’s clean energy efforts, visit edison.com/cleanenergy.