Calif. utility could leave 130,000 without power to curb extreme fire risk
PG&E serves over 5 million customers across the Golden State
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Pacific Gas and Electric Company is preparing to implement widespread power shutdowns across 15 California counties next week if blustery and arid conditions continue.
Hundreds of people in Southern California have already been forced to evacuate due to high winds that fanned Orange County's Bond Fire to more than 7,300 acres.
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA'S BOND FIRE EXPLODES OVERNIGHT, FORCING EVACUATION OF THOUSANDS
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Much of the state has been under red flag warnings -- issued amid concerns of extreme fire danger -- and thousands of residents have already experienced preventative outages.
Last week, Southern California Edison cut the power to about 15,000 homes and businesses and is reportedly considering turning off electricity to another 271,000 this weekend.
In this Oct. 25, 2020, file photo, debris flies through the air as a PG&E lineman works on repairing electrical wires that were touching due to high winds on Manzanita Court in Concord, Calif. (Jose Carlos Fajardo/Bay Area News Group via AP, File)
According to USA Today, San Diego Gas & Electric has pulled the plug on around 24,000 people, with an additional 73,000 under safety shutoff advisories.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Now, 130,000 customers may be literally left in the dark -- including five tribal communities -- as early as Monday. SF Gate noted Friday that if households make up an average of three people, up to 260,000 Californians could be affected.
In Northern California's wine country and the San Francisco Bay Area, over 8,500 homes could have their power shut off as well.
In a tweet and accompanying statement, PG&E said alerts were sent out to warn people on Friday.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"High fire-risk conditions are expected to arrive late Sunday evening with high winds forecast to continue until into early Monday morning, peaking in strength during the day Monday, and possibly lingering in some regions through early Tuesday," the utility wrote.
CLICK HERE FOR THE FOX NEWS APP
"Once the strong winds subside, PG&E crew will patrol the de-energized lines to ensure they were not damaged during the severe weather. PG&E will safely restore power as quickly as possible, with the goal of restoring most customers within 12 daylight hours, based on weather conditions," they said.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The statement said the hot air creates tinder-like brush that could fuel wildfires.