PG&E Cuts Power to Some Customers in California on Fire Risk

PG&E Corp. cut power to some customers in California due to dry and windy conditions that have elevated the risk of wildfires.

There were 779 outages impacting nearly 57,500 customers as of 9:22 p.m. local time on Sunday, the utility said on its website. The overall number of outages includes those that are planned to limit the risk of wildfires and unplanned disruptions.

Related: California Utility Bills Are 20% Higher Due to Wildfires

Dry wind gusts of up to 50 miles per hour risk toppling power lines and other equipment that could spark blazes. The U.S. National Weather Service has issued a raft of red flag fire warnings across northern and central California, meaning critical fire weather conditions are either present or imminent.

The electricity outages follow an earlier warning from PG&E of possible so-called proactive power cuts—which can range from 18 hours to several days—due to heightened fire threats. Those measures are possible across 15 counties from Sunday through Monday, according to PG&E.