Southern California Edison had cut electricity to more than 43,000 of its customers as of Monday evening in public safety power shutoffs as Santa Ana winds battered much of the region.
As of 8:30 p.m., the shutoffs affected 8,211 customers in Los Angeles County, 10,575 in Riverside County, 1,686 in San Bernardino County and only five in Orange County, according to Paul Griffo, spokesman for SCE. Others were affected in Kern and Ventura counties.
Areas affected included parts of Simi Valley, Upland, Aguanga and Hemet.
An estimated more than 168,000 of SCE’s customers are under power shutoff consideration, which is about 3.4 percent of SCE’s customers.
Griffo said that the shutoffs were determined based on weather conditions SCE observed and were chosen in areas that are considered high fire risk. He said that once the weather event is declared over, power will be back on within 24 hours after crews inspect lines for any damages.
“People will come out to inspect the lines to make sure there aren’t palm fronds or branches on the lines,” Griffo said.
Red flag fire warnings were issued lasting through Tuesday.
Widespread critical fire weather conditions are expected Mon-Tue and Red Flag Warnings have been issued for all areas except for inland valleys. Gusty Santa Ana winds are expected with very low RH and critically dry fuels. Please practice wildfire safety! #CAwx #LAwind #CAfire pic.twitter.com/NmA7DGZppc
— NWS Los Angeles (@NWSLosAngeles) December 7, 2020
In Los Angeles County, the National Weather Service also issued a high wind warning in effect until noon on Tuesday, reporting winds from 30 to 45 mph and gusts up to 70 mph. A similar warning was put into place for the San Bernardino and Riverside county valleys with winds reported at 20 to 30 mph and gusts as high as 50 mph, according to the NWS.
Some of the outages may stem from downed lines from the winds or other causes. However, crews had not assessed the lines as of Monday evening, Griffo said.
“We understand these public safety power shutoffs are disruptive to our customers and the community we serve, especially during the COVID-19 crisis,” Griffo said. “As Edison customers ourselves living in the various communities we serve we understand the effects (of the shutoffs).
“We only shut off power as needed to reduce the risk of wildfires.”
SCE customers can view if they are under consideration for a power shutoff at https://www.sce.com/wildfire/psps
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