When strong winds hit California, utility companies increasingly cut power to neighborhoods across the state to try to reduce the threat of wildfires.
This week alone, Pacific Gas & Electric and Southern California Edison blacked out tens of thousands of homes as historic winds struck.
One of the utility’s power lines along the 405 Freeway was believed to have been struck by a dried eucalyptus tree branch that broke off during high winds, according to the DWP. Sparks from the electrified line ignited a brush fire that eventually destroyed 12 homes and forced thousands of residents to evacuate, officials said.DWP officials said there was no failure of electrical equipment and that utility crews had cleared the area of vegetation in July, as required by fire safety codes.
Turning off power in a densely populated city such as Los Angeles presents its own set of issues, affecting everything from traffic lights to hospitals, said DWP general manager Marty Adams.“You’re talking about essentially handicapping the city from functioning,” Adams said. “Do you put major parts of the city out of power, which means putting people out of business?”
Los Angeles City Councilman Paul Koretz, whose district includes the hillside neighborhoods of Bel-Air and Beverly Crest, plans to introduce a motion that would ask the city to study whether it should ground power lines in fire-prone areas, his spokeswoman Alison Simard said. Anticipating strong winds, San Diego Gas & Electric turned off power this week to some of its 3.6 million customers. Most of those affected live in rural areas, but the blackouts also extended to populous communities including Encinitas and Rancho Santa Fe, said utility spokeswoman Ashley Bernhardt.SDG&E has de-energized lines since 2013, and is recognized by the state as a leader in performing targeted outages.
The DWP has wildfire insurance, but its premiums have risen 20% in the last few years, a “cost that directly affects our ratepayers,” Adams said. However, he added that other utilities have seen steeper jumps in insurance costs.
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