San Diego Union-Tribune (Sunday)

CALIF. GIRDS FOR HEAT, OUTAGES

Red flag warnings in effect in northern and central areas

-

One of California’s largest power companies announced Saturday it plans to temporaril­y shut off power to residents of 16 counties and a tribe to prevent wildfires sparked by electrical equipment.

Pacific Gas & Electric said it would initially shut off power to about 15,000 customers in Butte, Plumas, Shasta and Tehama counties starting at midnight Saturday. Power will be shut off to another 74,000 customers in 12 other counties and one tribe this evening, the company said.

The customers are expected to get power back on Monday night, the company said.

Pacific Gas & Electric said during the shutoffs, employees will check power lines for any damage. The company has opened up 28 community resource centers to help customers who lost power.

The shutoffs come as fire-weary California prepared for a new siege of hot, dry weather with potentiall­y strong winds that could cause power lines to arc and spark new blazes in parched vegetation that’s ready to burn.

Red flag warnings for extreme fire weather conditions were to go into effect in northern and central areas of the state at 9 p.m. Saturday and last into Monday, the National Weather Service said.

A second burst of winds was expected in those regions late today into Monday. In Southern California the most critical wind conditions were expected Monday, although it was unclear how strong they would be.

More than 8,000 California wildfires so far this year have scorched 5,600 square miles, destroyed more than 7,000 buildings and killed 26 people.

Most of the loss has occurred since a massive outbreak of fires ignited by a freakish frenzy of dry lightning strikes in mid-august. The causes of other fires remain under investigat­ion and authoritie­s have said one was caused by a pyrotechni­c device at a gender reveal event.

The renewed concern came with some 17,000 firefighte­rs still on the lines of 25 major wildfires statewide, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.

Recent weather has been moderate, and Cal Fire said in a statement Saturday that firefighte­rs have made “excellent progress.”

The new threat stemmed from prediction­s of a fall heat wave caused by a ridge of high pressure building off the West Coast that was expected to move eastward and settle on top of Northern California well into the coming week, the weather service said.

Such pressure causes dry, warming winds to flow from the interior toward the Pacific, reversing the normal flow of moist ocean air. Some canyons, passes and valleys are prone to high windspeeds as the air squeezes through on its rush offshore.

“A combinatio­n of the very dry fuels, low relative humidity values, and windy conditions will lead to dangerousl­y critical fire weather conditions,” the weather service’s Sacramento office wrote.

 ?? NOAH BERGER AP ?? An air tanker prepares to drop retardant while battling the August Complex fire in the Mendocino National Forest. That fire, which ignited Aug. 16, was 870,200 acres and 43 percent contained Saturday.
NOAH BERGER AP An air tanker prepares to drop retardant while battling the August Complex fire in the Mendocino National Forest. That fire, which ignited Aug. 16, was 870,200 acres and 43 percent contained Saturday.

Newspapers in English

Newspapers from United States