Intense winds in Santa Ana have left thousands of people without power in Southern California

SANTA CLARITA, California (KABC) –

Thousands of people in southern California, and especially in the San Gabriel Valley, were left without power Monday, as the first Santa Ana wind event of the season swept the region.

Nearly 20,000 Edison customers in Southern California were left in the dark in Los Angeles County at one point.

In the San Gabriel Valley, more than 9,500 customers in five different areas of Altadena are involved, as well as nearly 2,800 customers in Monrovia. Nearly 400 customers are also experiencing a downtime in Kinneloa Mesa.

Several schools in the San Gabriel Valley have also canceled classes due to high winds and blackouts.

These schools include: Altadena Elementary School, Eliot Arts Magnet, Franklin Elementary School, Sierra Madre Middle School, Sierra Madre Middle School, Focus Point Academy, Aveson charter schools and the Bethany Christian School.

Also in Los Angeles County, 470 customers of SoCal Edison in Bradbury and 5,700 in Sierra Madre are without electricity.

Business owners in the area said they were losing money without electricity.

"We are losing money, we still have to pay the bill, if there is electricity or not at all you have to pay, so it hurts the company. I hope it will come back soon, "said Maurice Iskander. , owner of Lindsey's Liquors in Altadena.

The strong winds also knocked down many trees and left branches and debris in the streets. On Altadena Drive, teams worked to move a large tree that fell.

Still in the Inner Empire, San Bernardino County's Del Rosa neighborhood has approximately 1,600 Edison customers without electricity. In the Glen Avon area of ​​Riverside County, more than 1,100 Edison customers were without electricity, but this capacity has been updated to 185 customers.

The strong winds sent first responders and electrical crews to move across the Inland Empire, when trees were cut down or roads were blocked and the current has been cut.

Edison's crews have been dealing with trees that lowered electrical wires in some areas. Dust and debris have also been blown, causing large clouds of dust on the roads and making driving dangerous.

The Tustin area in Orange County has approximately 1,600 SoCal Edison customers without electricity and approximately 2,100 customers in Aliso Viejo.

In Ventura County, nearly 164 customers are affected in the city of Ventura. Edison reported that more than 1,000 customers were without electricity in Santa Paula and then updated this information to 41.

Thousands of Glendale Water and Power customers are also affected by outages. According to the company, approximately 7,800 of their customers in Altadena are affected, as well as 6,200 customers in Sierra Madre. He also reported that 840 customers were in the dark in San Dimas and 450 in Irvine.

Pasadena Water and Power said 260 customers are without electricity in Pasadena.

In the meantime, SoCal Edison is studying the unprecedented step of cutting power in areas where electric pylons could cause fires.

The company has sent alerts to inform customers in 41 cities in four counties – Los Angeles, Orange, Ventura and San Bernardino – that the power could eventually be cut. Edison does not know yet where and when this could happen.
In the past, electrical equipment has been accused of causing wildfires that spread rapidly in the same type of dry and windy conditions expected overnight. The company is facing lawsuits for allegations that its equipment would have been behind the start of the huge Thomas Fire.

Details on the operation of the program and the communities likely to be affected are available here.

Hot winds could reach speeds of up to 50 mph in parts of Santa Clarita and up to 70 mph in some canyons and passages. Combined with dry brush conditions, the authorities warn of a high fire risk over the next two days.

Southland areas affected by the warning include the mountain areas of Los Angeles, San Bernardino, Riverside and Ventura counties, as well as the coastal and valley communities. Most warnings are set to expire at 8pm. Tuesday.