Around 300,000 power costumers, had power shut off, which is estimated at more than one million people Monday as electric utilities cut off power lines to prevent the sparking of their equipment as California was buffeted by powerful winds and dangerously dry weather conditions.
Residents take photos of the Blue Ridge Fire burning in Yorba Linda, California, U.S. October 26, 2020. REUTERS/Ringo Chiu
Dry weather and strong winds spell great fires
As of late Sunday, Mt. St. Helena weather station recorded a gusting wind of 89 mph and sustained winds of 76 mph.
By Monday, winds have calmed slightly by 60 mph, the National Weather Service said.
Early Monday, the winds reached 50 mph in San Francisco Bay Area. Electricity was turned off in tens of thousands of homes. A red flag extreme danger was raised through 5 p.m. Tuesday on the regions'eastern and northern mountainous areas.
By Monday night, forecasters warn, another round of gust is predicted to sweep through the same areas.
Due to dry weather conditions, trees and plants are more flammable. Scientists have attributed these dry conditions to climate change. October and November are normally the height of fires. This year, however, there had been 8,600 wildfires in the state and it has burned about 6,400 square miles and destroyed 9,200 homes, businesses, and other structures. The death toll was recorded at 31.
In Southern California, winds are predicted to be up to 35 mph in lower elevations, while 70 mph in mountainous areas. With this wind condition, officials are worried that any spark could easily spread through tinder-dry brush and forestland.
Should this happen, the National Weather Service fear devastating fires similar to the 2017 fire in California's wine county and the Kincade Fire that damaged Sonoma County last October. Those fires were due to the PG&E transmission line that sparked the fire, eventually destroying hundreds of homes and the evacuation of almost 100,000 people to safety.
READ: Southern California Wildfire: Wildfire Rages, Tens of Thousands in Mandatory Evacuation
Major Power shut off
This is the fifth time this year that Pacific Gas and Electric, the nation's largest utility had to shut off power to reduce the risk of downed powerlines that could spark fires especially in this dry weather condition and gusty winds.
Utility companies shut off power to 225,000 customers in Northern California on Sunday. Later, power was cut off to another 136,000 costumers in 36 counties.
According to Aaron Johnson, the event is the largest " we've experienced this year, the most extreme weather."
Small fires that broke out on Sunday in Sonoma and Shasta counties were quickly contained by the firefighter and are now under investigation.
Sheriff Kory Honea said that he is particularly concerned for residents in foothill communities in northern California during blackouts because cellular service in the area can be spotty and mobile phones are the only way that residents stay informed.
The Southen California Edison utility considered preventive safety power outages for 71,000 costumers in six counties by Monday. San Bernardino County will be most affected, the SCE said.
According to PG&E officials, although they understand the inconvenience that they burden residents, the company is turning the power off as a safety measure against strong winds, dry weather conditions, and electric sparks, especially now that many people are working from home and children are taking online classes because of the pandemic.
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