Southern California Edison (SCE) says it expects a 20–40% increase in both the duration and frequency of Public Safety Power Shutoffs (PSPS) as wildfire season continues, and those shutoffs will reach new areas.
“High fire risk areas have expanded, and so we needed to expand our high fire risk areas to match those,” said SCE spokesperson David Eisenhauer.
SCE is urging customers to prepare now by signing up for personalized PSPS alerts at SCE.com and creating an emergency plan before an outage happens.
SCE's preparation tips for households facing extended outages:
- Keep charged batteries and extra flashlights on hand.
- Consider having a battery-operated radio for updates.
- Consider a generator — SCE lists qualifying backup power solutions and rebates on its website.
- Customers who rely on medical devices can apply for a free portable Critical Care Backup Battery program.
Placing blocks of ice or frozen gallons of water inside refrigerators can help to keep food fresh longer. Also, be sure to check all food for signs of spoilage before consuming.
“We understand it can be a hardship for people. It's difficult being without power for a long period of time, but this is such an important tool that we use to keep communities safe,” Eisenhauer said.
