The saying, “It’s a small world,” takes on a whole new meaning when it comes to the utility business.
While they’ve never met, Aaron Elmore and Daniel Gallion have unknowingly crossed paths more than once: first working at Southern California Edison and now working at Hawaiian Electric.
“The linework world is big, but it’s small,” said Elmore, a former SCE troubleman. “There are a lot of people who you'll run into who’ve either worked with somebody that you know or have seen you somewhere before.”
On a typical workday at Hawaiian Electric, Aaron Elmore uses skills and knowledge gained during his years as an SCE troubleman.
The world got even smaller after Hurricane Lala swept across the Big Island and damaged electrical equipment. Hawaiian Electric’s call for mutual assistance brought SCE crews to Hawaii to support restoration work, along with some familiar faces from Elmore’s and Gallion’s years in California.
“I ran into Jim Kennedy, the transportation services manager at Edison, and I’ve known him basically since I was a kid,” said Gallion. “We both came up at SCE at the same time.”
“This is like a blast from the past,” added Elmore, who reconnected with two of his old SCE coworkers supporting storm restoration in Hawaii.
While they’ve built new careers in Hawaii, their ties to California are still a prominent part of their story.
Elmore began his career as an inside wire guy — otherwise known as an electrician. After spending some time helping a line crew with some of their “grunt” work, they convinced him to start an apprenticeship. That step would lead Elmore to become a journeyman lineman at SCE and later a troubleman in the Inland Empire.
After spending 28 years at SCE’s San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station, Daniel Gallion now procures fuel, held in massive tanks, for Hawaiian Electric.
Gallion had a similarly unconventional path to the utility industry.
“I was working at a gas station, straight out of high school, when a friend of mine suggested I apply for an entry-level job at SCE’s San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station (SONGS),” said Gallion. “I started as a nuclear waste technician and worked my way up to become an environmental scientist at SONGS.”
After Gallion spent 28 years there, his department was dismantled, but he found the same role at Hawaiian Electric and moved his life across the Pacific — only willing to work somewhere near an ocean after so many years near San Diego.
Not long after, family and grandkids drew him back to the mainland, where he briefly rejoined the SONGS team to help decommission the plant. He was back at Hawaiian Electric about four years later — now overseeing fuel procurement for the energy company.
Elmore moved to Hilo a year ago to be closer to his parents and help care for his father, who has dementia. While he isn’t performing linework in his current role, he oversees the contractors that Hawaiian Electric partners with.
During a brief return to California, Daniel Gallion (l) helped SCE safely decommission the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station.
“Linework is linework no matter where you go — stringing wire, replacing poles and helping keep the lights on,” Elmore said. “But I can honestly say in all my years in the business, my favorite memories are at SCE as a troubleman. I loved the organized chaos when there was damaged equipment, and I was first on scene to fix it.”
After just about a year at Hawaiian Electric, he’s still hoping to return to linework at some point. For now, he's in close proximity — having overseen some of the first crews to respond to the Hurricane damage and continuing to supervise restoration work.
Gallion is enjoying his last few years before retirement and all the friendships he’s created along the way.
“My favorite part is the relationships you build,” said Gallion. “In my over 40 year career, I have made some incredible connections with people who are still in this business. It really is a small world.”
To learn more about careers at SCE, visit sce.com/careers.
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