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Outages possible in gusty Santa Ana winds

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Outages possible in gusty Santa Ana winds

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With gusty Santa Ana winds forecast, Southern California Edison announced it could shut off power to local areas as early as Friday morning if dangerous conditions occur.

The utility said it will monitor circuits throughout the region during dry and windy weather. Lines in these areas could be de-energized to prevent electrical equipment from starting a fire – outages known as public safety power shutoffs (PSPS).

The areas monitored included 132,000 customers early Thursday. Of those, nearly 23,000 were in Ventura County. Local race tracks included those in and around Fillmore, Santa Paula, Moorpark, Simi Valley, Newbury Park and Ventura.

While these locations are being monitored, Edison says the circuits will not be shut down until weather experts identify dangerous conditions.

The forecast called for Friday and Saturday for Santa Anas, Ventura and Los Angeles counties. Gusty winds and low humidity can cause wildfires to start more easily and spread more quickly. The National Weather Service has issued a fire weather warning for most local areas through Saturday evening.

“There is a little uncertainty about exactly how strong these winds will be,” said Kristan Lund, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Oxnard.

What is a public safety power shutoff?

The shutdowns are intended to de-energize electrical circuits to prevent problems caused by debris and trees getting into power lines.

Dozens of fires in California have been blamed on electrical equipment, including the massive Thomas Fire that started near Santa Paula in 2017 and the Woolsey Fire that started near Simi Valley the following year.

Authorities are urging residents to prepare for possible outages in good time. Before an outage occurs, people who need power for a medical device can call 211 for assistance. The Ventura County Sheriff's Office of Emergency Services will update its website with areas monitored and possible outages.

How can you tell if a power outage could affect your home?

Local areas are expected to continue to be monitored until midday Saturday. If there is a power outage, power will likely stop once the wind dies down. According to Edison, lines could be damaged or there could be branches on them.

Officials would need to patrol an area and troubleshoot any problems before power is restored, officials said.

For more information about possible power outages, visit sce.com/psps. For a map of monitored areas or outages, visit sce.com/outage-center/check-outage-status.

For local information regarding any outages, please visit vcemergency.com. To sign up for emergency alerts, go to readyventuracounty.org/vc-alert/.

Cheri Carlson covers environment and county government for the Ventura County Star. Reach her at [email protected] or 805-437-0260.

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